After what seemed like a collective and tragic amnesia, the nation was contemptuously taken on a merry-go-round of untold embarrassment when President Buhari met the 21 Chibok girls freed October 13 and their families at the State House, Abuja, on Wednesday. It may be alright that the president finally seized the moment to express appreciation for the girls’ release and also to empathize with the families of those still held in captivity. But the fawning and jubilant adulation given by the president may have unwittingly conveyed the impression of “mission accomplished.” The photo-ops certainly showed poor judgment given that about 200 other girls remain in captivity. This therefore was an unnecessary own goal by Buhari, who missed the opportunity of paying himself compliments as a caring leader. Nigerians are justifiably piqued by the perceived undue transformation of the traumatizing ordeal of these girls into some dubious promotion to stardom.
The girls were part of more than 200 kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls held since April 14, 2014, by Boko Haram. The presidency said in a statement that the girls were released after negotiations between Boko Haram, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Nigerian and Swiss governments. Presidential spokesman Garba Shehu, said in a statement that negotiations were ongoing, raising the prospect of more releases. “These 21 released girls are supposed to be talebearers to tell the Nigerian government that this faction of Boko Haram has 83 more Chibok girls,” Shehu, told Reuters.
On his part, the president promised: “These 21 girls will be given adequate and comprehensive medical, nutritional and psychological care and support. The Federal Government will rehabilitate them, and ensure that their reintegration back to the Society is done as quickly as possible…Aside from rescuing them; we are assuming the responsibility for their personal, educational and professional goals and ambitions in life… These dear daughters of ours have seen the worst that the world has to offer. It is now time for them to experience the best that the world can do for them. The Government and all Nigerians must encourage them to achieve their desired ambitions. Once again, I congratulate the 21 released girls, their parents, the Chibok Community the security agencies and all Nigerians on this day of delight and rejoicing.”
This kind of glib talk is a parody of the seriousness and deep thinking that should guide policy actions to free the remaining girls. Despite the attempt to elevate the event to some level of profundity, Buhari was flippant; dishing empty platitudes and vague promises. To begin with, what was it about the release of these girls that warranted congratulations? What was delightful and rejoicing at that occasion? And was there no one in Aso Rock, perceptible enough to realize that all the fanfare would further deepen the agony and anguish of the families of the girls who remain in captivity? Honestly speaking, the scar of that abduction on the soul of Nigerians and, indeed, humanity, is such that, any political gimmickry for what seems a perfunctory celebration would be a monumental insult to that national tragedy. This was unnecessary because public relations stunts are usually not the best course of action in matters of national trauma. It was offensive, to say the least.
The presidential charade did little credit to the president’s image because the event was too unedifying and lent it to insinuations of insensitivity to the hurting and traumatized families of the girls still in captivity. Feelings remain raw and the request is unmistakable: the nation wants a reunion with the remaining children. It is sickening that no answer is being offered anxious and tormented families as to any timeline when the other girls would be released, other than a lame plea for time. At this crossroads, there should be no rest for the President including the armed forces until the remaining girls are returned to their distraught parents. No other excuses or explanation will obviate the national anxiety now heightened by revelations that the girls are held by different factions of the terrorist group.
Therefore, it is not enough to make public commitments on assuming responsibility for the released girls. There must be visible, verifiable actions taken to alleviate the assault on their bodies and psyche. The affected girls have suffered untold hardship just as the other children trapped in the tractions of violence in the northeastern, and it is important for Nigerians not to forget their predicament. These children are witnessing in frightful clarity, the bleakness of their future. Many of them are orphaned, and live in filthy, disease-prone, unhealthy environments, where sanitary facilities (even in their crudest state) are a luxury. The absence of food, drinking water and adequate healthcare has also compounded their status as displaced persons.
But it is not only the children that will lose out; Nigeria, by the way it currently handles the situation befalling the children, will be the ultimate loser. So what is the future for these children? Ordinarily, it is difficult surviving in some places even with parents, let alone when parents are displaced, dead, or missing. The only recollection those children may have of their supposed years of innocence are sordid tales of woes, tragedy, disaster, and ugly images of carnage and death. What is happening now will adversely affect the northeast and the children in future. If the federal government does not address the situation of these children, another albatross of socio-economic dimension may well be on the way.
The future of the state is, therefore, already in peril because, with little or no education, the children have insufficient enablement to survive in a competitive world. Without war, these Nigerian children were already marooned in a terrible socio-economic order that cares less about them. With war, the situation is double jeopardy. For the children of Nigeria especially in the northeast, the future seems very bleak. Considering the state of physical abuse and challenge, deprivation, psychological trauma and emotional distress that the children in Nigeria, but especially of the northeast have passed through and are still going through, the situation calls for a lot of trauma management and counselling services to enable them make the journey back to normal life.
So the government must exert itself to bring back the girls. And while the government deserves commendation for the on-going counter-offensive against the insurgents, a cardinal part of the overall objective should be to bring back the remaining girls. Turning the sod for photo-ops with the released girls may seem all right but it is not a comforting step. Finding all the girls and rehabilitating them is most important. Whatever the case, a blueprint for the rehabilitation of the Chibok girls and the entire community is essential. This is the least the Chibok community and indeed the country deserve in these trying moments. The security of the future of Nigeria represented by these children should be one victory the nation must win.
