Kidnapped Kebbi Schoolgirls Located Within District, Tinubu Halts Foreign Trips as Nation Boils

• SMBLF Says Nigeria Under “Full-Scale Siege”
• President Orders Massive Security Deployment After Kwara Church Attack
• “We Have a Fair Idea Where the Girls Are” — Senator Maidoki
• Tinubu Awaits Security Briefings, Assures Families of Federal Action

By Yinka Giwa
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday suspended his planned trips to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, after major security crises in different parts of the country, including the abduction of schoolgirls in Kebbi State and a deadly bandit attack on worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State. The President, according to his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, is now “awaiting further security briefings” before making any foreign travel decisions.

Tinubu had been scheduled to depart Abuja on Wednesday for the 20th G20 Summit of leaders in South Africa and later proceed to Angola to attend the 7th AU-EU Summit. However, Onanuga said the President decided to postpone his departure following the “security breaches in Kebbi State” and the attack “against worshippers at Christ Apostolic Church, Eruku.”

In response to the Kwara attack, Tinubu ordered “the deployment of more security personnel to Eruku and the entire Ekiti Local Government Area” of the state, and directed the police to “go after the bandits who attacked worshippers.” He also reiterated his instruction to security agencies to “do everything possible to rescue the 24 schoolgirls, abducted by the bandits, and bring the girls back home, safe.”

Vice President Kashim Shettima, who visited Kebbi State on behalf of the President, conveyed Tinubu’s assurance that the Federal Government “will deploy all instruments of state to ensure the return of the schoolgirls.” Shettima described the abductions as “unfortunate” and praised security agencies for their sacrifices. He added that Brigadier General Musa Uba — killed by terrorists — will be honoured alongside Hassan Makuku, the Vice Principal of Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School, where the abduction occurred.

Governor Nasir Idris, who received the Vice President at the Sir Ahmadu Bello International Airport, thanked Tinubu for his intervention and said the state government is complementing federal efforts by providing “an enabling environment for security agencies.”

Amid these developments, a key breakthrough came from Senator Garba Maidoki, representing Kebbi South, who disclosed that authorities have identified the general location of the abducted students. Speaking during a television interview on Wednesday, Maidoki said, “We have a fair idea where the girls are, and we are sure they have not moved outside the Kebbi South Senatorial District.” He added that “there is high hope that the girls will return home in one or two days.”

The abducted students include Fatima Sani Zimri, Hafsat Ibrahim, Nana Firdausi Jibril, Masauda Yakubu Romo, Hauwa Saleh, Hauwau Umar Imam, Salima Garba Umar, Salima Sani Zimri, Amina G. Umar, Rashida Muhammad Dingu, Saliha Umar, Aisha Usman, Jamila Iliyasu, Maryam Illiyasu, Najaatu Abdullahi, Zainab Kolo, Surraya Tukur, Hafsat Umar Yalmo, Maryam Usman, Amina Illiyasu, Ikilima Suleman, Khadija Nazifi, Hauwa’u Iliyasu, Hauwa’u Lawali, and Ummu Kulsum Abdulkarim.

Meanwhile in Abuja, national leaders from the South and Middle Belt raised an alarm over what they described as the country’s rapid descent into insecurity and authoritarian drift. After an emergency strategy session, the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) — comprising Afenifere, PANDEF, the Middle Belt Forum, and regional delegations — declared that Nigeria is under “a full-scale siege.”

Presided over by Afenifere leader HRM Oba Olaitan, the Forum cited the Kebbi school abductions, the killing of Brigadier General Uba in Borno, and attacks across Kaduna, Kwara, and Kogi as alarming indicators. The leaders also warned that the nation is “sliding toward one-party dominance,” accusing authorities of “weaponization of state power for political consolidation.”

They condemned the Nigeria Police for “intruding into partisan conflicts” and criticised INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan for failing to stabilise the political environment ahead of the 2027 elections. The communiqué, signed by HRH Oba Olaitan, Dr. Pogu Bitrus, and Amb. Godknows Boladei Igali, urged the Federal Government to act decisively to free abducted children and stop what they called “ongoing ethnic cleansing.”

As security agencies intensify their operations, the nation’s hopes now hinge on the claim by Senator Maidoki that the abducted girls remain within Kebbi South — and may soon be brought home.