A devastating episode of Nigeria’s school kidnapping crisis unfolded on Monday, as bandits ambushed the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School (GGCSS), Maga, in the Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
The attack, which occurred in the pre-dawn hours, claimed the life of the school’s vice principal and resulted in the abduction of 25 female students, plunging the community into terror and sorrow.
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The tragedy sent shockwaves across the country, drawing condemnation from Abuja and prompting a directive from President Bola Tinubu for an urgent rescue mission.
The Sequence of Terror
The assault on the GGCSS Maga began around 4 a.m., despite local residents already being on high alert, having heard reports of the bandits attacking and kidnapping people in nearby villages on Sunday.
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A resident of Maga, Malam Abdullahi, provided a detailed account of the events to BBC News Pidgin.
He told the media outlet that the first sounds of gunfire were heard around 3:30 a.m., which were initially dismissed as local vigilantes on patrol. The true danger was realised around 4:30 a.m. when the community heard “heavy gunshot,” and people were seen “running out from the school where the bandits entered to carry out the attack.”
Mr Abdullahi confirmed that the bandits first entered the teachers’ houses before moving to abduct the students.
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The chilling details of the murder of the school official, Hassan Makuku (identified as a vice principal or chief security official), were relayed through his wife.
She told the community that the attackers met her husband and asked if he was the school’s chief security Officer. Upon his confirmation, the bandits declared: “Today is your last day.”
The official’s final moments were captured in the harrowing account: “She told us that her husband begged them to allow him to sit down before they kill him. As he sat down, they shot him in the chest,” Mr Abdullahi recounted.
After the murder, the tragedy deepened when the bandits forced the slain official’s daughter to lead them to the students’ hostel.
“After they killed the teacher, they carried his child to show them the hostel where the students were. That is how they gathered all the children,” he said.
As the bandits retreated with the girls, they also shot and injured the school security man, Ali Shehu.
Mr Abdullahi also noted that residents had attempted to call security personnel for help before the attack, and soldiers had been in the town until about 2 a.m. the night before the invasion.
Official Confirmation and Presidential Vow
Confirming the incident, the Kebbi State Police Command stated that armed bandits, shooting indiscriminately, invaded the school around 4 a.m.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Nafiu Kotarkoshi, noted that the bandits, armed with sophisticated weapons, “scale[d] the school’s fence to carry out the attack.”
He added that a police tactical team at the school engaged the bandits in a gun duel, but the attackers still managed to whisk away the 25 students to an unknown destination.
The command confirmed that a man, Hassan Makuku, died in the attack, and another, Ali Shehu, sustained a hand injury.
Mr Kotarkoshi assured the public that a rigorous combined search-and-rescue operation, involving police, military, and vigilantes, had been deployed to track the bandits through their suspected escape routes and the nearby forests.
In Abuja, President Tinubu acted swiftly, directing security and intelligence agencies to “locate, rescue, and safely return” the students, and to ensure the perpetrators face justice.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, conveyed the president’s directive, stating: “The government condemns the reprehensible attack on innocent students and the killing of school officials who were carrying out their noble duty.” He pledged that the Federal Government “will not relent until this objective is achieved.”
Army Chief Orders Massive Manhunt
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Waidi Shaibu, has reportedly visited Kebbi State and directed troops of Operation FANSAN YANMA to intensify the search-and-rescue operation.
As reported by Zagazola Makama, a security-focused news platform, Mr Shaibu, a lieutenant-general, issued a firm order to “continue day and night fighting” until all the abducted schoolgirls are safely rescued, indicating an immediate, high-tempo, and large-scale operation involving both ground and air components across the Danko/Wasagu forests and adjoining areas.
The COAS also paid a sympathy visit to the traditional ruler of Danko and the principal of the attacked school, assuring them that the military considers the “safety of these children a national priority.”
The search is currently focused on suspected escape routes and surrounding forests, with all security resources committed to locating and recovering the students.
Widespread Condemnation
The incident drew fire from political and regional bodies across the nation.
The Kebbi State Government, through the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ahmed Idris, described the abduction as “condemnable and barbaric,” while Governor Nasir Idris, who visited the scene, termed the attack “unfortunate.”
The Chairperson of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, Governor Muhammadu Yahaya of Gombe State, deemed the attack “tragic, senseless and utterly unacceptable,” warning that the “Continued assaults on educational institutions threaten to reverse gains” in school enrolment.
On the opposition front, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was “devastated” by the attack, calling it a “reminder of the worsening insecurity,” and urged the Federal Government to “urgently review and strengthen its security framework.”
The PDP similarly expressed “deep sorrow over the attack,” arguing the tragedy “further highlights the alarming rise in insecurity” under the current administration.
As the rigorous security operation continues, the GGCSS Maga abduction is serving as a painful and urgent reminder of Nigeria’s recurring security vulnerabilities, compounding the fears of local residents who lamented that unrestrained attacks have made it difficult for farmers to access their fields.
A Tragic Timeline of Nigeria’s School Kidnappings
The Kebbi attack is merely the latest chapter in a long history of mass abductions targeting educational facilities in northern Nigeria, a pattern that consistently undermines national security and the right to education.
The most prominent incidents in recent years include:
Kuriga School (Kaduna State): In early March 2023, gunmen attacked a Primary and Junior Secondary School in Chikun Local Government Area, kidnapping about 287 students and one teacher (who later escaped). The attackers arrived just as the morning assembly was concluding.
Jangebe Girls School (Zamfara State): In February 2021, gunmen attacked the GGSS Jangebe boarding school, kidnapping around 317 students.
Kankara Science Secondary School (Katsina State): In December 2020, gunmen attacked the boys’ science secondary school, kidnapping more than 300 students and transporting them into a forest in Zamfara State.
Dapchi Girls Secondary School (Yobe State): In February 2018, suspected Boko Haram militants attacked the girls’ school and abducted 110 students.
Chibok Girls Secondary School (Borno State): On April 14, 2014, Boko Haram attacked the girls’ secondary school. They entered the town around midnight, shooting to wake residents, before packing 276 girls into trucks and kidnapping them—an event that drew global attention to Nigeria’s escalating security crisis.
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