Children’s Day: CAN decries attacks on schools

—-as Tinubu pledges rescue, integration of abducted children

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru & Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA—The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, warned yesterday that Nigeria was endangering its future, following attacks on schools and kidnap of children by terrorists, while teachers also increasingly work  under the threat of violence and abduction.

CAN’s warning came on a day President Bola Tinubu assured Nigerians grieving over their abducted children that his administration had intensified rescue operations, stronger school protection and comprehensive care for survivors.

In a statement by the CAN President, Daniel Okoh, the Christian body said many Nigerian families were celebrating Children’s Day under the weight of fear, hardship and uncertainty over the lives of their children.

“A country where parents fear sending their children to school and teachers are uncertain about returning safely from work cannot honestly claim to be protecting its future,” it said.

It described Oyo school abductions as another painful reminder that children and schools were becoming increasingly vulnerable in communities battling insecurity.

CAN said it was deeply troubled by the fate of children still in captivity and the anguish their families continued to endure daily.

“No child should ever have to experience terror, violence or uncertainty in a place meant for learning, protection and hope,” it added.

The association said the growing danger facing teachers had become equally disturbing, noting that many educators now shared the same fear and uncertainty as the children entrusted to their care.

It stated:  “The image of frightened teachers standing helplessly beside terrified children in the hands of criminals should trouble the conscience of the nation and stir urgent action from those responsible for securing lives and communities.’’

It warned that repeated attacks on schools were not only disrupting education but also steadily eroding public confidence in the ability of the state to protect children and secure the future of the next generation.

Beyond insecurity, it said millions of Nigerian children continued to face hunger, poverty, abuse, trafficking, child labour and poor access to quality education and healthcare.

“For too many young Nigerians, childhood itself is gradually being replaced by hardship, fear and survival,” Archbishop Okoh said.

Tinubu pledges rescue, reintegration of children in captivity

Marking Children’s Day with a message, President Bola Tinubu promised to intensify rescue operations, stronger school protections, and comprehensive care for survivors.

He also told the children in captivity that the government had neither abandoned nor forgotten them as directives had been issued to the security agencies for their safe rescue. 

“As a father and your President: you are not forgotten. You are not abandoned,” Tinubu said.

He acknowledged the national pain: “Some children have been forced into fear. Some parents cannot join today’s celebration because their hearts are set on one prayer: ‘Bring our children home.’’

With the Children’s Day theme, “Future Now: Promoting Inclusion for Every Nigerian Child,” as his backdrop, the president framed the crisis as both a moral failure and an urgent security priority.

He declared:  “To the families grieving and despondent, your government will not turn your pain into ceremony. We will continue to work until children taken from their homes, schools and communities are returned safely, and until those who profit from this cruelty are brought to justice.’’

Tinubu ordered all relevant security agencies to “sustain and intensify coordinated rescue operations” that were intelligence-led and focussed on recovering children safely.

He also directed urgent improvements in school protection across high-risk areas, including updated vulnerability mapping, tighter coordination between state governments and security commands, rapid response links between schools and local security units, and stronger community-based early warning systems.

“The federal ministry of education, working with state governments, is to deepen the implementation of the Safe Schools framework with clear reporting, clear responsibility and clear timelines,” the president said, insisting that “every school in a vulnerable area must know who to call, what to do, where to move, and how to protect children when danger is identified.”

He emphasised that rescue was only the beginning of the state’s duty, saying “a child who returns from trauma must return to care, medical attention, counselling, education and dignity.” 

He ordered ministries and agencies to ensure recovered children received “proper reintegration support, not temporary attention.”

The president, who also warned that protecting children could not be left to government alone, said:  

“Parents, teachers, traditional rulers, religious leaders, community leaders, youth groups, transport unions, local vigilantes and the media have vital roles to play and are essential to prevention and response.’

“When a community sees strange movement around a school and keeps quiet, a child is placed at risk. When warning signs are ignored, families suffer,” the President said.

On the wider promise for Nigeria’s children, Tinubu painted a forward-looking agenda, saying “my administration remains committed to a Nigeria where every child can learn safely, grow in good health, eat well, access opportunity and dream without fear. 

‘’We are investing in education, health care, nutrition, social protection, digital skills and safer communities because childhood must not be a privilege reserved for a few.

“To our children, you matter—your dreams matter; your safety matters. Your education matters. Be assured that your future matters to this government and to this nation, and we will safeguard it.”

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