One-Million-Women-March To Be Staged In Abuja For The Release Of Abducted School Girls

Women all over the country will on Wednesday stage a one-million-women protest march in Abuja to press for the release of the girls abducted by suspected Boko Haram gunmen at Government Secondary School, Chibok.

Prof. Hauwa Abdu Biu disclosed this, yesterday, during an emergency meeting convened by the First Lady of Borno State, Hajiya Nana Kashim Shettima on the way forward for the release of the school girls.

She spoke last week on behalf of coalitions of Borno women during which they called for the release of the school girls and offered to go to the Sambisa Forest in search of the girls.

Prof Biu said that the one million march tagged “Free our girls” will involve women all over the country and called for the mobilization of Borno women to Abuja for the rally.

“The last time, we were in black but this time around the colour for the Abuja rally is red; so we should all be prepared and mobilize ourselves for the rally”, she added.

Earlier, the First Lady, while addressing the meeting, called on the wives of the security chiefs to assist in mounting pressures on their husbands to intensify efforts towards rescuing the abducted school girls.

“I want to use this opportunity to appeal to wives of security chiefs at the national and state levels to mount pressures on their spouses to intensify effort to rescue our dear children. However, I feel it is necessary to call on all women in Borno to come up with their resolutions and harmonize them,” she said.

“Let us all put our differences aside irrespective of our faith, or ethnicity, let us all join hands together to rescue these girls, I know that we can do it, Almighty Allah is with us, He knows our intention”, Hajia Nana Shettima said amid sobs.

According to her: “I am sure for now we are not on our own, I am happy to inform you that the wife of the president called me two days ago, I believe that she is also with us, let us all join hands together irrespective of political affiliations.”

Most of the women who spoke at the meeting called on the Federal Government and the security agencies to intensify efforts towards rescuing the kidnapped school girls.

They also called for prayers and fasting in Mosques and Churches so that God can touch the heart of the insurgents to release the girls.

Aisha Wakil, who has been in the forefront of calling on the insurgents to lay down their arms and embrace dialogue, cautioned against the use of force in rescuing the girls.

The meeting had in attendance wives of security chiefs in the state, non-governmental organizations, women professional bodies, representatives of Federation of Muslims Women Associations (FOMWAN), Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), among others.