By Adejola Adeyemi Crown
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Minister of State for Defence, Alhaji Bello Matawalle, to move to Kebbi State following the abduction of 24 students from Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town.
The attack occurred around 4 a.m. on Monday, leaving the community in shock.
According to a statement released by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, the President “has asked the Minister of State for Defence, Alhaji Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Kebbi State over the abduction of 24 schoolgirls in the state.”
The statement added that Matawalle “was asked to remain in the state to monitor security efforts to secure the release of the abducted students.”
Matawalle, a former governor of Zamfara State, brings experience in tackling banditry and mass kidnappings.
During his tenure from 2019 to 2023, he handled the abduction of 279 female students aged 10 to 17 from Government Girls Science Secondary School in Jangebe, Zamfara State, on 26 February 2021. The students were released on 2 March 2021.
The presidency also confirmed that President Tinubu had postponed his scheduled trips to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, as he awaited further security briefings on the kidnapped Kebbi schoolgirls and a recent attack on Christ Apostolic Church worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State.
Matawalle is expected to arrive in Birni-Kebbi on Friday to coordinate rescue and security measures.
