By Ola ‘Kiya, Reporting
WHEN Amina Hassan heard the frantic rustle behind her window at 3:30 a.m., she thought it was a stray goat knocking over their bowls outside. Minutes later, she watched armed men storm her home, shoot her husband, the vice principal of the school next door, and drag her teenage daughter into the darkness. That her daughter is alive today is the result of a split-second distraction and a desperate escape into the bush.
For the 25 other schoolgirls abducted that night in Kebbi, their fate remains unknown.
A Night Of Terror At Maga
The quiet rural community of Maga in Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area, Kebbi State, was torn apart in the early hours of Sunday when gunmen descended on the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School (GGCSS), killing Vice Principal Malam Hassan Makuku and abducting 25 students.
According to eyewitnesses, the attackers moved with precision—first targeting the staff quarters before scaling the school fence and heading to the girls’ hostel. They encountered no resistance.
The late Makuku was reportedly shot while trying to shield students from the attackers, an act that has since earned him posthumous admiration across the community.
But inside his home, the ordeal was even more personal and harrowing.
‘They Dragged Me… Then Turned To My Daughter’
Recounting her trauma, Mrs Amina Hassan said she woke her husband that night thinking animals had broken into their compound.
“I heard movements behind our window,” she told reporters, her voice cracking. “Before we knew it, the door was banged open. They shot my husband when he got up, and they dragged me outside.”
Her teenage daughter walked into the chaos moments later.
“They left me and went to her,” she said. “They told her to lie down so they could shoot her too.”
The girl, thinking fast, asked to go outside and ease herself. When the bandits opened the door, they saw other students in the hostel and turned their attention away. In that moment, she fled into the bush.
“She came home in the morning,” Mrs Hassan said, tears running down her face. “My husband was gone. Twenty-five girls were gone.”
Community In Fear, Parents In Anguish
By sunrise, Maga was a town in mourning. Families rushed to the school, searching for answers, clutching photographs of their daughters. Some fainted at the hostel door. Others wandered the compound in shock.
“They operated freely,” one resident said. “There was no resistance. Nobody stopped them.”
The attack has intensified fears about the safety of rural schools, particularly girls’ schools, in Nigeria’s vulnerable northern belt—an issue that has plagued the country for more than a decade.
Security Agencies Flood The Forests
Kebbi Police spokesman, CSP Nafiu Abubakar, confirmed that 25 students were abducted.
He said police tactical units, soldiers, and vigilantes had been deployed and were “combing the bandits’ routes and nearby forests” in a bid to rescue the missing girls and apprehend the attackers.
Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, also visited Kebbi on Monday, charging troops of Operation FANSAN YANMA to conduct “intelligence-driven operations” and intensify day-and-night pursuit.
“We must find these children,” the COAS declared. “Success is not optional.”
He met traditional rulers, community leaders, and vigilantes, urging stronger collaboration and coordinated action.
FG Condemns Attack, Promises Swift Rescue
Information Minister Mohammed Idris said President Bola Tinubu had issued clear directives to security and intelligence agencies to locate the abducted girls and bring them home safely.
“The protection of every Nigerian, especially schoolchildren, remains a solemn responsibility of the state,” he stated.
Political Reactions: PDP Blames Government Failure
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemned the incident, describing the killing and abductions as “tragic” and symptomatic of the Tinubu administration’s failure to secure the country.
“When a government fails in its primary duty of safeguarding lives and property, it must accept responsibility,” the party said.
Governor Idris Meets Parents, Begs For Calm
Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris visited Maga, meeting grieving parents and local leaders. He assured them that all security agencies were working round the clock.
“We gave them our word that everything possible will be done to rescue their children,” he said.
A Community Holding Its Breath
As combined forces continue combing forests and riverine hideouts, families in Maga wait anxiously—clinging to hope, praying for a miracle.
For some, like Amina Hassan, the worst has already happened.
Her husband is gone. Her daughter survived by inches. And the school he served is now a symbol of a nation’s unresolved crisis: the safety of its children.
Yet, amid pain and uncertainty, Maga stands united—hoping the remaining girls will return alive, and that the night of horror will not be repeated.
Photo Credit: Channels TV
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