Women operating under the aegis of Voices for Inclusion and Equity for Women (VIEW) have called on the government and security agencies in the country to show visible leadership and rescue the abducted schoolgirls from Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State.
The group, in a statement signed by Asmau Joda, Maryam Uwais, Mairo Mandara, Aisha Oyebode, Fatima Akilu, Kadaria Ahmed, Larai Ocheja Amusan and Ier Jonathan-Ichaver, made available to journalists in Lagos, expressed outrage over the weekend attack in which armed men stormed the school at dawn, killed the Vice Principal, and abducted 25 students.
VIEW, who described the incident as a direct challenge to Nigeria’s leadership and collective humanity, said the latest tragedy underscores the Nigerian state’s continuing failure to protect its most vulnerable citizens, insisting that the mass kidnapping “is not simply another security incident” but a brutal indictment of years of unfulfilled promises and weak implementation of the Safe Schools Initiative.
The group noted that despite national grief and global attention following the mass abductions in Chibok, Dapchi, Jangebe, and numerous smaller attacks across the North, schools remain dangerously exposed.
Many of the women who signed the statement were active in the Bring Back Our Girls movement and have spent years working directly with communities traumatised by insecurity.
“More than a decade after repeated tragedies, Northern Nigeria is still one of the most dangerous places in the world for a girl to pursue an education,” the statement read.
“Our daughters are once again missing. And we must ask, with pain, anger and clarity, where are our leaders?” the group fumed.
VIEW accused political leaders, security agencies, and northern representatives of failing to defend girls who already face significant cultural and economic barriers.
They warned that the growing pattern of abductions raises disturbing questions about whether neglect is contributing to the continued marginalisation of northern girls.
The coalition demanded swift, intelligence-driven rescue operations and daily public updates, warning against the slow and poorly coordinated responses that have characterised previous tragedies.
They called on the President, the First Lady, the Kebbi State Governor, the Northern Governors’ Forum, the Northern Senators’ Forum, the Arewa House of Representatives Caucus, the Arewa Consultative Forum, and all traditional, faith-based, and security leaders, including the National Security Adviser, Chief of Defence Staff and Inspector-General of Police, to show visible leadership.
“This is not a moment for silence or excuses. The abduction of the Maga girls must be treated as a national emergency—not a political talking point or a press release moment,” VIEW stated.
