Atiku condemns attack on Kogi school, says FG has failed to protect children

ADC presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has condemned Tuesday’s abduction of a school principal, a NECO official, and students during ongoing examinations in Kogi State, calling it proof that the Nigerian state has “abdicated its most fundamental responsibility” to protect children.

Gunmen invaded a government secondary school in Dekina Local Government Area, abducting five people; one has since been rescued, leaving four still held. Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo has ordered a multi-agency rescue operation.

In a statement from his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said “an examination hall should be a sanctuary of hope, not a crime scene,” linking the attack to what he called the government’s broader neglect of education, including recently proposed WAEC and NECO fee increases. He argued that repeated unpunished school attacks have emboldened criminal groups nationwide.

Atiku called for the immediate, unconditional rescue of all victims and urged a nationwide security review of schools and examination centres, saying: “History will remember whether it protected Nigeria’s children or abandoned them.”

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