A father has described his helplessness after witnessing gunmen on about 50 motorcycles abduct his son and dozens of other children from a Catholic boarding school in northern Nigeria. “They were being trafficked on foot the way shepherds control their herds,” said the father, identified as Theo for his safety. “I felt like going [to help] but… what could I do?”
The attack on St. Mary’s school in Papiri village is the third mass kidnapping in a week, deepening Nigeria’s security crisis. While the Christian Association of Nigeria reports 315 students and staff were taken, state Governor Umar Bago controversially claimed the number was “exaggerated” and blamed the school for remaining open despite prior threats.
Parents like Theo are camping outside the school, expressing fury at the government’s response. “We have concluded that the government is not concerned about us – we feel like we are not part of the country, they have abandoned us,” Theo said. The pain is palpable among families, with one mother pleading, “He’s my only son… please help us.”
The incident has forced the closure of boarding schools across several states and drawn international attention. While President Bola Tinubu canceled a foreign trip to address the crisis, the situation is compounded by complex motives; while some kidnappings are carried out by Islamist militants, many are orchestrated by criminal gangs for ransom, operating freely in the region’s vast, forested terrain.
By James Kisoo
