security
Insecurity: UNICEF Urge Authorities to Beef up Security in Schools
By Gom Mirian, Abuja
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has asked authorities in Nigeria to work out modalities for providing basic security in schools nationwide to provide a secure learning environment for every child in the country, especially for girls, to encourage girls’ education
The UN Children’s agency which made the call in a statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday by UNICEF communication specialist, Dr.
The statement added that these school closures have impacted the education of approximately 1.3 million children in the 2020/21 academic year. This interruption of their learning contributes to gaps in children’s knowledge and skills and may lead to the loss of approximately 3.4 billion USD in these children’s lifetime earnings. This, risks to further perpetuate cycles of poverty and inequality.
Mr. Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Representative in Nigeria in the statement said “Unsafe schools, occasioned by attacks on schools and abduction of students, are reprehensible, a brutal violation of the rights of the victims to education, and totally unacceptable. Their occurrences cut short the futures and dreams of the affected students,”
“Attacks on learning institutions render the learning environment insecure and discourage parents and caregivers from sending their wards to schools, while the learners themselves become fearful of the legitimate pursuit of learning. The invisible harm school attacks inflict on the victims’ mental health is incalculable and irredeemable
“Girls have particularly been targeted, exacerbating the figures of out-of-school children in Nigeria, 60 percent of whom are girls. It is a trajectory which must be halted, and every hand in Nigeria must be on deck to ensure that learning in Nigeria is not a dangerous enterprise for any child, particularly for girls,” said Hawkins.
“UNICEF, with generous funding from donors, is collaborating with the government of Nigeria to protect children’s right to education in a safe and inclusive learning environment. This involves building the capacity of School-based management committees (SBMCs) on school safety and security and strengthening community resilience.
“In Katsina State,300 SBMC members have been trained, and schools, supported through the Girls’ Education Project (GEP3) funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK, have developed Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans to mitigate the impact of potential and actual threats.
“Multi-sectoral task teams on school safety have also been established across all the 34 LGAs of Katsina state to provide timely and efficient networking among actors on school security, with particular focus on the safety of girls. Additionally, 60 Junior Secondary Schools have developed emergency plans and tested the plans in evacuation drills.
“In Katsina State, government and communities have fenced some schools, and this is encouraging girls to attend school, underscoring the reality that collaboration is required in addressing insecurity in schools and making schools safe, especially for girls,” said Hawkins.
“Although Nigeria has ratified the Safe Schools Declaration, schools and learners are not sufficiently protected. Unless greater attention is given to protecting children, teachers and schools, they will continue to come under attack. Urgent, coordinated action is needed to safeguard the right to learn for every child in Nigeria”, the statement read
The Police Command in Adamawa has confirmed the abduction of Usman Sahabi, the Chief of Staff to the Speaker, Adamawa House of Assembly.
Sahabi, a journalist with the Adamawa Broadcasting Cooperation, Yola, was on secondment to the house.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, SP Suleiman Nguroje, confirmed the incident in Yola on Thursday.
Nguroje gave assurance that the command would leave no stone unturned to rescue the victim unhurt.
“Sahabi was kidnapped at gunpoint by unknown gunmen at about 1 am on Thursday in his resident at Wuro-chekke, Yola South Local Government Area,” he said.
Nguroje said that the command was doing everything possible to rescue him alive and also arrest the culprits.
“We have already deployed our personnel to swing into action immediately for his rescue.
“We are also soliciting collaboration with the public to provide us with useful information,’’ he said.
Nguroje promised financial reward for whoever that would provide the command with useful information that could lead to the victim’s rescue.
NAN reports that earlier, the state Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalist had condemned the incident and solicited prayers for the victim’s safe return.
The council’s Vice Chairman, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the union quickly reported the incident to the security agencies for their intervention.
Ibrahim sympathised with the victim’s family, loved ones and members of the union over the sad incident. (NAN)
Twelve young ladies were on Tuesday arraigned at an Abeokuta Magistrate Court over alleged prostitution and indecent behaviour.
They were arraigned on a two-count charge of prostitution, behaving disorderly and in an indecent manner in public place, as well as constituting nuisance.
The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against them.
The defendants are Abosede Adebowale, Olamide Balogun, Folashade Ogunleye, Opeyemi Akanni, Funmilayo Ishola, Ayomide Balogun, Tomisin Olakohun, Bukola Awonusi, Okiki Ogundimu, Jumoke Michael, Olamide Adebayo and Olamide Gbokiki.
The Prosecutor, Insp. Olaide Rawlings, told the court that the defendants committed the offence on Sunday at Iwe-Irohin along Oke-Ilewo road and the Skate Ground in Panseke area in Abeokuta.
Rawlings said the defendants were parading themselves in an unruly manner and constituting nuisance in public place to wit prostitution and other sex work.
She added that they were arrested by some police men.
The Prosecutor, however, noted that the offences contravene sections 225A(4) and 249(1)(a) of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun, 2006.
The Magistrate, Mrs A. K. Araba, granted bail to the defendants in the sum of N200,000 each with one surety in like sum, who must be a registered Bondsman with the Ogun State Judiciary.
She then adjourned the case until Nov. 10 for hearing.(NAN)
Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has said that no ransom was paid to the abductors of the four female students of the Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK) rescued by the military.
Sule disclosed this after paying a thank-you visit to the Commandant, 177 Guard Batallion, Keffi Local Government, Lt.
Col. Auwalu Inuwa, on Saturday.Reports says that the four students were kidnapped in their residence in Agwan Kare district in Keffi in the early hours of Tuesday, October 10 and taken to unknown destination.
However, after intensive manhunt by the police, military and other security agencies, the girls were rescued on Thursday afternoon.
Inuwa confirmed to newsmen that the students were rescued in the surrounding bushes of Agwan Gauta in Keffi after painstaking efforts by the military officers.
Speaking on the development, Sule said that neither the NSUK authorities nor the military paid any ransom before the abducted students were rescued.
“I am not aware of any ransom. Once security officials mount pressure on the kidnappers, I don’t think there was ranson.
“There was no ranson paid to the best of my knowledge.
“The university didn’t pay any ransom and neither did the military,” he said.
The governor told newsmen that he was at the barracks personally to convey the appreciation of President Bola Tinubu to the commandant for their efforts in rescuing the girls.
He expressed joy seeing the girls in good health, with their parents making arrangements to receive their daughters back.
He disclosed that the military is putting up additional measures to beef up security not only around the university but on the Akwanga-Abuja highway.
“I am happy and I am here to show great appreciation to the commandant and the other security agents that also participated in the rescue operations.
“The commandant informed me that the police and civil defence also participated along with the community leaders.
“I am happy also to see the parents getting ready to see how they can take over their children,” a visibly elated governor said. (NAN)
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