The Honorable Minister of Women Affairs, Barr Uju Kennedy Ohanenye has pledged her Ministry’s plans to provide full rehabilitation for the 4 rescued girls from the Al-Kadriyar family after two weeks in the kidnappers’ den.
Making this declaration during a visit to the rescued girls at a facility where they are undergoing medical treatment, Barr Uju stated that it is very unfortunate for the girls to pass through such a harrowing experience and pledged that her Ministry has initiated full rehabilitation plans to re-integrate the girls into the society “ the Ministry will closely monitor their recovery and will be there for them immediately they leave this facility and commence full rehabilitation which includes engagement of a psychologist due to the trauma they must been through during the period in the kidnappers’ custody”
Speaking further, she added that the Ministry will liaise with the management of the National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) to ensure that one of the girls will undertake her one year national service with the Ministry of Women Affairs and also solicited for the girls to be moved from their present schools to another safer environment which will not subject them to any form of vulnerability.
She also commended the Chief of Army Staff and the Inspector-General of Police for working with credible intelligence and coordinated collaboration among the security agencies which led to the release of the girls last weekend, She expressed the concern of President Ahmed Tinubu over incessant cases of kidnapping in all parts of the country especially within the FCT “Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu is deeply worried about this trend of kidnapping and is working assiduously towards addressing the situation. After this visit, I will update the President and First Lady about the condition of these girls” she added
Also speaking, the father of the girls, Mr. Al-Kadriyar Monsoor thanked the Minister for her visit which has livened up the girls and also thanked security agencies for their efforts which resulted to their release. He however urged the Federal Government to ensure that a stronger synergy exists among the various security agencies as part of measures to improve the nation’s security architecture.
While recalling the strategic nature of Bwari Local Government Area, he also harped on the need for robust machinery to put in place at the grassroots through coordinated community-based intelligence sharing to make the work easier for security agencies “Bwari is bordered by 4 states, Plateau, Niger, Nasarawa and Kaduna and this makes the area porous to any form of invasion, government should improve on community-based intelligence and communication to make lives safer at the grass root level of our country”
The Minister also presented food beverages, soap, noodles and sanitary items to the girls as part of her Ministry’s preparatory plans towards their rehabilitation after leaving the facility.
It will be recalled various sections of the media earlier reported that the girls were abducted alongside their father within their resident at the Zuma 1 area of Bwari Area Council on 2nd January, 2024. Their father was later released to enable him source for ransom. However, the failure of the family to meet their demand within a deadline issued by the kidnappers led to the killing of one of them, Nabeeha.
After the young school girl was killed by her abductors, the bandits raised the ransom from N60 million to N100 million with a threat to kill all the sisters.
According to Police sources, they were rescued by the FCT Anti-Kidnapping squad in a concerted effort with troops of the Nigerian Army around the Kajuru forest in Kaduna state on Saturday last week.
Ohaeri Osondu Joseph, Fnipr, Fcai
Special Assistant, Media
