Senator Shehu Sani representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District on Thursday said the abducted Chibok girls are alive and can be freed.
He also says the government should use minimal force and negotiation to seek the release of the abducted girls.
According to him, after three failed attempts by the government to negotiate with the insurgents, what is needed in any new negotiation is a guarantee from the government and the insurgents that they will honour agreements.
He also asked the government to reach out to a few people rather than set up a panel of many people that will not be united in their thoughts.
On the night of 14–15 April 2014, 276 female students were kidnapped from the Government Secondary School in the town of Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria. Responsibility for the kidnappings was claimed by Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist and terrorist organization based in northeastern Nigeria.
On 17 October 2014, hopes were raised that the 219 remaining girls [clarification needed] might soon be released after the Nigerian army announced a truce between Boko Haram and government forces. The announcement coincided with the six-month anniversary of the girls’ capture and followed a month of negotiations mediated in Saudi Arabia by Chadian president, Idriss Déby.
The announcement was met with doubt as this was not the first time the Nigerian government had claimed a breakthrough in negotiations with the Islamic militant group – it had to backtrack on a previous announcement in September after saying the girls had been released and were being held in military barracks.
