Army explains delay in Kogi school rescue

The Nigerian Army has explained that troops were delayed in responding to the abduction at a school in Kogi State because the examination centre was located in a remote area that was difficult to find.

The Commanding Officer of the 21 Battalion, Lt. Col. Godiya Monde, disclosed this on Thursday while briefing journalists at Olowa in Dekina Local Government Area, where gunmen attacked a school during the ongoing National Examinations Council (NECO) examination.

Monde said troops received a distress call around 4 p.m. but struggled to locate the school, which he described as an isolated “miracle centre” used by external candidates writing the Literature in English examination.

According to him, soldiers eventually found the location with the assistance of a community member, but the attackers had already fled before they arrived.

“When we got here, we saw examination papers scattered across the classrooms. That confirmed that an attack had taken place,” he said.

The army commander said troops immediately launched a search operation in the surrounding forest and had blocked suspected escape routes used by the abductors.

He said the kidnappers abducted four people, including two students, the school principal and a NECO supervisor.

Monde added that the abductors had already established contact with authorities and that security operatives were tracking their location.

“They’ve made some calls, and we are tracking them. We are confident that we will rescue the victims,” he said.

The attack occurred on Tuesday when gunmen stormed the examination centre. One victim was later rescued, while security agencies intensified efforts to secure the release of the remaining abductees.

The Kogi State Government had earlier disclosed that two of the abducted candidates were external students writing their examinations at the centre, describing the facility as a “miracle centre” that failed to meet the state’s security requirements for the ongoing NECO examinations.