Over 200 parents of students and teachers abducted from St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State, have expressed frustration and desperation as they await news of their loved ones.

The school was attacked by armed bandits on November 21, when about 315 people, including 303 students and 12 staff members, were abducted and taken into captivity.

A few days later, on November 23, about 50 students escaped and were reunited with their parents, leaving a total of 253 people still in captivity.

The parents, who gathered at the school to register their names as directed by the Niger State Government, pleaded with the state government and relevant stakeholders to help rescue their children and teachers from the clutches of their captors.

Many of the parents, in tears and carrying placards with various inscriptions, decried the continued captivity of the children, saying that so far the state government had yet to visit or send a representative to commiserate with the families.

Some of the inscriptions read: ‘Bring Back Our Girls’, ‘Our Girls and Teachers are still in captivity’, ‘We need security in Agwarra’, and ‘Is education a crime?’

The incident has reportedly resulted in the death of two parents — a male and a female — from shock and trauma, according to a statement issued by the Catholic Bishop of the Kontagora Diocese, Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, who is also the proprietor of the school.

“I am devastated, in fact, I am very disturbed that the children up till now are not back yet,” said Sister Blessing Amodu, the sobbing headmistress of the school.

“All I am pleading for at this moment is for the government and all concerned and everyone that is touched by this to please help us to look for ways on how to rescue these children and the staff back to us,” she pleaded.

A parent, Dimas Joseph Mauhuta, whose son, Julius Dimas (JSS 2), is among those abducted, blamed the government for reportedly saying the children were not kidnapped.

“We wonder why the state government will say such a thing. The truth is that, my child and others were abducted. The government should stop playing the blame game and act. They should come to our aid instead of saying what is not true,” he said.

Also speaking, Emmanuel Ejeh, whose son, Mathias, was abducted, recalled that his two other children graduated from the school and that it had never experienced such an attack in the past.

“We are appealing to the government to please help us. bring back our children, they are innocent, they don’t deserve this,” he said.

Earlier, the Diocesan Director of Communication, Rev. Fr. Stephen Okafor, explained that the registration process was necessary, as directed by the government.

“With this registration and the number of parents who have turned up, we do hope those negative speculations will end,” he said.

Addressing the parents, the Catholic Bishop of the Kontagora Diocese, Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, expressed hope that the abductees would soon regain their freedom.

“It is eight days now since their abduction, we have not heard anything yet. We are still very hopeful of their return and we are prayerful,” he said.

The bishop also stated that the school serves over 50 communities within and outside Agwarra LGA, noting that bringing the parents together for registration was not an easy task.

He explained that most of the parents travelled on motorcycles, riding between three and four hours to reach the school.

Speaking further, the Principal of the school, Rev. Sis. Felicia Gyam, debunked claims that there was any prior warning of the attack.

“Whoever says there was a prior warning before the attack should bring proof of evidence. Neither was there a circular nor a verbal notification,” she said.

The recent abduction of over 300 students and teachers from St Mary’s Catholic School in Niger State, alongside similar incidents in Kebbi, Kwara and other states, has sparked widespread concern and outrage within and beyond Nigeria, highlighting the urgent need for the federal government to confront the escalating wave of attacks.

Among those who have appealed for the immediate release of the hostages is Pope Leo XIV.

In response to the insecurity, President Bola Tinubu directed the deployment of security forces to search for the abductees, ordered the recruitment of additional police officers to strengthen internal security, declared a nationwide security emergency, and authorised the deployment of forest guards to protect remote areas from armed groups.

The attack forms part of a wider wave of violence across Nigeria, driven by multiple armed groups, including the Boko Haram sect and the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP.

As a result, the federal government has continued to face criticism over its handling of the security crisis, with analysts insisting that more needs to be done to tackle the root causes of the conflict threatening the peace, unity and progress of Nigeria.