On Friday January 13th 2017, life was normal at Tulip International College which is located at Isheri on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. Well that was until about 9:30 PM when some criminals dug their way into the school premises through the fence and kidnapped five students and three school teachers, including two Turkish nationals. This incident is similar to a series of similar events which have occurred in Nigeria since the kidnapping of the Chibok Girls in Borno State. What is worrying though is that unlike the Boko Haram-engineered kidnapping of the Chibok Girls, these other abductions occurred in Lagos and were clearly masterminded by criminals out to get money.
According to news reports today, the abductors of the students and teachers have now demanded for a total of N1.2bn in ransom before they could release their captives. Specifically, they are demanding for N300 million for each of the Turkish kids and then N100 million each for the six Nigerian nationals. This is clearly worrisome; an onslaught on the Nigerian education system which the Government cannot allow to continue happening.
All of us here at Passnownow.com will continue to frown against such cowardly acts of violence against students and teachers in Nigeria, and will keep demanding that Governments at various levels in the country make our schools safe places where people can learn. It is bad enough that the conditions of most of these schools are poor. We cannot allow insecurity to become one of the things to worry about too.
Our hearts are with the abducted students and teachers and it is our sincerest hope that they are reunited with their families soonest.
