11/06/2026
WHEN THE SCHOOL BELL BECAME A SIREN OF FEAR
"A Chronicle of School Abductions in Nigeria and a Call for National Unity Against Terror".
There was a time in Nigeria when the ringing of the school bell symbolised hope.
It announced the beginning of lessons, the pursuit of dreams, and the promise of a brighter future. It summoned children from villages and cities into classrooms where they learned to read, write, think, and aspire.
Today, for too many Nigerians, the memory of a school bell carries a different emotion.
It echoes with fear.
It reminds us of nights when armed men descended on schools under the cover of darkness. It reminds us of frightened children running barefoot into the bush, teachers shielding pupils with their bodies, and parents waiting endlessly for news of sons and daughters who never returned home.
The tragedy of school abductions in Nigeria is not merely a security problem. It is a national wound. It is a stain on our collective conscience and a direct assault on the future of the nation.
The Chronicle of a National Tragedy
Chibok – Borno State
14–15 April 2014
Under President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Kashim Shettima, 276 girls were abducted from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok.
The world responded with the famous " " campaign. Governments, international organisations, celebrities, and activists demanded action. Some girls were rescued, others escaped, and several were released through negotiations over the years. Yet many families continue to bear the scars of that dreadful night.
How did it happened? Who aided it? Why was there no prompt response? Mystery yet to uncover.
The Chibok abduction became the symbol of Nigeria's struggle against terrorism.
Igbonla – Lagos State
25 May 2017
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, six students were abducted from Lagos State Model College, Igbonla, Epe.
The students were eventually released after months in captivity following security operations and negotiations.
Dapchi – Yobe State
19 February 2018
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Ibrahim Gaidam, 110 girls were abducted from Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi.
Most of the girls were later returned after negotiations. However, one of them, Leah Sharibu, remained in captivity because of her refusal to renounce her Christian faith, becoming a symbol of courage and resilience.
Kankara – Katsina State
11 December 2020
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Aminu Bello Masari, approximately 344 students were abducted from Government Science Secondary School, Kankara.
The government deployed military, police, intelligence, and local security structures. The students were eventually released within days.
Kagara – Niger State
17 February 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, 42 students, staff, and relatives were abducted from Government Science College, Kagara.
The victims were later released after extensive security efforts.
Jangebe – Zamfara State
26 February 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Bello Matawalle, 317 girls were abducted from Government Girls Science Secondary School, Jangebe.
The government intensified rescue efforts, and the girls were eventually freed.
Afaka – Kaduna State
11 March 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nasir El-Rufai, 39 students were abducted from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka.
Months of negotiations and rescue efforts followed before the students regained freedom.
Greenfield University – Kaduna State
20 April 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nasir El-Rufai, 23 university students were abducted.
Several students tragically lost their lives before the survivors were released.
Tegina – Niger State
30 May 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, 136 pupils were abducted from Salihu Tanko Islamic School.
The nation watched anxiously until the children eventually regained freedom.
Bethel Baptist High School – Kaduna State
5 July 2021
Under President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nasir El-Rufai, 121 students were abducted.
Months of anguish followed before the students were released in batches.
Kuriga – Kaduna State
7 March 2024
Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani, 287 pupils and students were abducted.
The federal government mobilised security agencies and intelligence resources. Within weeks, the victims were rescued and reunited with their families.
Maga – Kebbi State
17 November 2025
Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Nasir Idris, 25 schoolgirls were abducted.
Security operations eventually secured their freedom.
Oriire/Ogbomoso Axis – Oyo State
15 May 2026
Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Seyi Makinde, 39 pupils and students alongside seven teachers were abducted from schools in Oriire Local Government Area.
The incident shocked many Nigerians because it occurred in the South-West, a region historically less associated with large-scale school kidnappings.
The historical record reveals a difficult truth.
The largest concentration of school abductions occurred between 2020 and 2021 during the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. But many activists, public analysts rreligious leaders were silent.Within a relatively short period, Nigeria witnessed Kankara, Kagara, Jangebe, Afaka, Greenfield, Tegina, and Bethel.
This observation is not an accusation. It is a matter of documented history.
Likewise, Chibok occurred under President Goodluck Jonathan, while Kuriga, Maga, and Oyo occurred under President Bola Tinubu and Nigerians shouted on top of their voices. Why did the volume decrease in the Administration that witnessed more abductions?
Terrorism does not respect political parties.
Kidnappers do not ask whether a president comes from the North or the South.
Bullets do not recognise ethnicity.
Bandits do not recognise religion.
The tears of a mother in Chibok are not different from those of a mother in Kankara, Kuriga, or Ogbomoso.
Therefore, beyond Politics, one of the most unfortunate developments in Nigeria's public discourse is the tendency to weaponise tragedy for political gain.
When children are kidnapped, Nigerians should first ask:
"How do we rescue them?"
"How do we prevent this from happening again?"
Instead, too often, debates descend into partisan arguments over who should receive blame and who should be defended.
The suffering of children should never become campaign material.
No political party owns the pain of a kidnapped child.
No region owns the grief of bereaved parents.
No administration should be judged solely by one tragedy, nor excused from accountability because another administration experienced similar failures.
The enemy is not one another.
The enemy is terrorism.
The enemy is banditry.
The enemy is criminality.
Successive governments have adopted several approaches:
Military offensives against insurgent and bandit groups.
Intelligence-led rescue operations.
Collaboration among the armed forces, police, DSS, and local security networks.
Negotiation efforts in some cases.
The Safe Schools Initiative.
Increased deployment of security personnel around vulnerable schools.
Investment in surveillance and early-warning systems.
While many abducted children have been rescued or released, the recurrence of these incidents demonstrates that reactive measures alone are insufficient.
What Must Be Done
Nigeria cannot continue to react after every tragedy.
The nation must act before the next tragedy.
1. Fortify Vulnerable Schools
Schools in high-risk areas should have perimeter fencing, alarm systems, communication equipment, and trained security personnel.
2. Expand Intelligence Networks
Security agencies must improve intelligence gathering within communities where criminal groups operate.
3. Strengthen Border Security
The movement of weapons and criminal networks across porous borders must be curtailed.
4. Deploy Modern Surveillance Technology
Drones, satellite monitoring, and real-time tracking systems should become standard tools in security operations.
5. Empower Local Communities
Community vigilance groups, traditional institutions, and local authorities should work closely with security agencies.
6. Improve Rapid Response Capacity
Security forces must be capable of responding within minutes rather than hours when schools are attacked.
7. Protect Teachers
Teachers working in vulnerable areas should receive security training, risk allowances, and emergency support systems.
8. Make Education Zones National Security Priorities
Every school should be treated as critical national infrastructure deserving special protection.
On the whole, the story of school abductions in Nigeria is ultimately not about statistics.
It is about children.
Children who left home carrying books but returned carrying trauma.
Teachers who chose to educate the next generation and paid for it with fear, suffering, and sometimes their lives.
Parents who waited through sleepless nights praying for a telephone call, a rescue report, or a miracle.
Nigeria must never become a country where attending school is an act of courage.
The nation owes every child a classroom that is safer than the road leading to it.
History will not remember which political party shouted the loudest.
History will remember whether Nigerians united to defeat the forces that turned schools into hunting grounds.
The bell must ring again—not as a warning of danger, but as a symbol of hope, learning, and the future that every Nigerian child deserves.
Francis Praize
Public commentator.
