Chibok girls deserve continued attention – American lawmakers, others

by Temitayo Famutimi

| credits: File copy

Campaigners demanding the rescue of the over 200 abducted Chibok girls have lamented that the online advocacy was dwindling.

According to them, the online #BringBackOurGirls campaign, which attracted global attention and grabbed international headlines before now, is gradually dwindling.

Expressing concerns over the development, American Congresswoman, Sheila Jackson-Lee, said there was a need for people around the world who value girl-child education to continue to rally support for the schoolgirls who have been in Boko Haram custody for over 115 days.

Writing on her Twitter page, Jackson-Lee, who represents the Texas’ 18th Congressional District in the US House of Representatives, stated that it would be quite thoughtful and compassionate for all campaigners to keep up the with the support to find the girls.

“Do not let the world forget until every girl is found,” she advocated, adding, “We will not forget them and we will not rest until they are returned.”

Another American lawmaker, Frederica Wislon, who had been in the forefront of the campaign, stated that since the Chibok girls were still with the insurgents, all those who gave the online advocacy a push from the outset should not begin to “stand idly by.”

The Congresswoman from Florida argued that it was high time the Federal Government rescued the students as girl child education was a lifeline to any nation’s development.

“We can’t allow this story to fade from the headlines. Attacking and abducting schoolgirls is unconscionable. When we educate girls, we change the world and educated girls lead to empowered societies,” she added in a series of messages on her Twitter page.

A member of the Abuja #BringBackOurGirls coalition, Amina Atoyebi, also lamented that most people “are tired” of campaigning for the girls’ rescue.

She appealed to Nigerians both home and abroad not to relent in speaking up for the schoolgirls in captivity, adding that doing so would go a long way in sympathising with their parents and loved ones.

Atoyebi, however, described as “utterly ridiculous” for the Federal Government to be allegedly vague on the efforts being made to rescue the girls in captivity.

“This is utterly ridiculous! Almost four months since the girls were abducted. The sad truth is that the Chibok girls’ lives will be totally different from what it was before the abductions. Most people are tired about the #BringBackOurGirls issue. We must not move on just like that. Let us speak up for them.

“But what is the Nigerian Government doing to bring back these girls? They are being vague and don’t want to be held accountable. I don’t think that the relatives of any kidnapped politician was in captivity for up to four months. What is worse than any bad government is a people whose humanity and consciences have been eroded. After 100 days, it is natural that the numbers will dwindle forcampaign. A lot can happen in 100 days.”

Asking Nigerians and well-meaning individuals in different parts of the world to rally round the Chibok girls, an online activist, Jeff Okoroafor, asked, “If in 115 days no one cared to ask your whereabouts, how would you feel? That is exactly how the Chibok girls are constantly feeling today.”

Okoroafor argued that the majority of the girls would feel “distressed, ostracised and forgotten”, 115 days since their abduction from their school dormitory.

He added that the thought of what those girls were going through was depressing and unimaginable.

“One hundred and fifteen days since their abduction, where is the government? Where is this nation’s leadership? Without being told, the abducted Chibok Girls are being battered by their captors. We pray that the government act urgently to rescue them,” the online activist added on Twitter.

But an online commentator, Victor Asemota, queried the effectiveness of the online campaign in securing the safe release of the girls.

“I still have not seen scientific proof that the hashtag campaign led to meaningful change for good. If you have it, then please share with me,” Asemota argued.

But another social commentator, Henry Okelue, disagreed with Asemota over the effectiveness of the #BringBackOurGirls online campaign.

According to Okelue, the online campaign had been successful in drawing the attention and concern from people around the globe to the girls’ plight.

“When Nigeria’s history is updated, the campaign will find a place of pride and posterity will remember it for good,” Okelue said on Twitter.

@punchng.com