The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the revelation by Amnesty International (AI) that the Federal Government-controlled security forces got advanced warning but failed to prevent the abduction of schoolgirls in Dapchi, Yobe State, as heartrending, distressing and disappointing.
The party said the report however vindicated its stand that President Muhammadu Buhari-led Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) must be held responsible for the Dapchi abduction and several other atrocities committed by insurgents against citizens, particularly in the northern part of the country.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement on Tuesday, commended AI for its courage in exposing the truth.
He added that the report further underpinned speculations of conspiracy theorems around the abduction and placed a huge moral burden on the Presidency.
“This revelation by the Amnesty International has finally exposed Buhari-led Federal Government and its manifest failures, deceptions and culpability in the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate abduction of our daughters.
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“The world can now see why the Presidency and APC have been suppressing information on the abduction and why no firm steps have been taken to unravel the real reasons behind security lapses like the withdrawal of troops from the area as well as those behind the false rescue report, which frustrated the genuine effort to save our daughters.
“This report indeed places a direct question on President Buhari as the chief security officer of the nation, especially in the face of his multifarious failures to effectively oversee routine security actions, particularly in troubled areas,” PDP said.
According to the party, from the AI report, it was clear that if the troops guiding the area, under the command of the Buhari-led Federal Government, were not withdrawn, and if President Buhari had effectively monitored the situation and implemented the Safe School Initiative, introduced in the wake of the 2014 Chibok abduction, the Dapchi schoolgirls would not have been abducted.
It said that the revelation by Amnesty International had further reinforced the demand that the National Assembly should immediately conduct an independent, comprehensive and system-wide inquest to unravel the truth about the abduction.
The party said that many Nigerians still believe that there was more than met the eyes in this Dapchi abduction saga.
