President Bola Tinubu has issued a directive to the nation’s entire security apparatus to rescue the kidnapped school children in Kaduna.
Mr Shettima made this directive known during a sympathy visit to Governor Uba Sani on Saturday.
He disclosed that Mr Tinubu was deeply troubled by the regrettable incident and assured that the President is fully committed to ensuring the country’s security.
“I am here at the behest of President Bola Tinubu to empathise, in solidarity with the government and people of Kaduna State, over the sad incident of the kidnapping of our school children.
“The President was personally pained by what happened and he has instructed the security agencies to leave no stone unturned until we return our children to their parents.He is in regular contact with the governor.
To date, he has spoken with the governor four times and with me three times, asking if the children have been rescued.
“On behalf of my principal, President Bola Tinubu, please accept our sympathy over the travails that have befallen our people. Be rest assured that the President is equal to the task, the very essence of the existence of government is to secure the lives and properties of the citizenry.
“I appeal to the media to be very selective in their choice of reporting the incident, in the interest of the children that are affected.”
However, he commended the media and solicited their continued support.
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“Our friends from the media, we have come a long way and we will go a long way with you. You are our friends, you are our contemporaries, you are our brothers,” Mr Shettima said.
Earlier, Mr Sani mentioned that Mr Tinubu, Mr. Shettima, and the security forces had been working closely with the Kaduna state government following the incident.
He added that the state government is also collaborating with the affected community, the leadership of Chikun Local Government, and relevant security agencies to ensure the safe return of all the children.
“I would like to thank the Vice-President for visiting us, to commiserate with the people and Government of Kaduna over the unfortunate incident.
“I am happy that since the incident happened, President Bola Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima as well as the security agencies in the country have been working closely with us to ensure the safe return of the children.
“I would like to caution the media to be very careful in the way they make their own reports because, at this critical time, we have to avoid politicising this very unfortunate incident.
“What is important to us is the safe return of the children, and, of course, we cannot allow anybody to jeopardise the safety of the kidnapped children,” Mr Sani said.
A total of 287 students and teachers from Government Secondary School and LEA Primary School in Kuriga, Kaduna, were kidnapped by bandits on Thursday, causing widespread anger across the country.
The bandits allegedly attacked the Kuriga area of Chikun Local Government Area in Kaduna State, opening fire on some individuals before abducting the remaining students and teachers from both schools.
