25 April 2014, Abuja – The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, Thursday expressed concerns over not only the conflicting figures of the missing school girls of Government Secondary School, Chibok, in Borno State, abducted by Boko Haram insurgents but also the inability of the Federal Government to rescue the kidnapped girls.
NUPENG in a statement in Lagos, called on security agencies to work in tandem with the Borno State government, the school authorities, to authenticate the actual number of the girls missing and spread their dragnets to locate them unharmed.
In the statement by its President, Igwe Achese, NUPENG described the present situation as “unacceptable and embarrassing of the inability of the security agencies to locate the whereabouts of the missing school children after over a week of their abduction.
“NUPENG states that the report states that 234 school girls are missing and not 129, which calls for concern and goes to show the inefficiency and failure of the security forces to arrest the Boko Haram scourge.
“We also condemn the recent attack on another Government Girls Secondary School at Yana, Bauchi State, and commend the governor for the quick evacuation.
“We call for a change of strategy in combating terrorism by applying modern day technology to deal with the situation, as it is done in Israel. We should call for foreign assistance in dealing with the spate of terrorism in the country.”
The union noted that the sponsors of terrorists must be identified and made to face the wrath of the law, no matter their position in the society.
“NUPENG also wants effective policing of our vast porous borders which serves as a conduit for the hit and run activities.
“We also call on the Federal Government to dialogue with our neighbours to see how they can help prevent the marauders from escaping into their countries.
“NUPENG appeals to the conscience of the terrorists to release the innocent school girls unhurt so that they can re-unite with their families,” the union said.
– See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/04/nupeng-tasks-security-agencies-on-missing-school-girls/#sthash.niSYnLrB.dpuf
– Victor Ahiuma-Young, Vanguard
