The family of the abducted Dapchi schoolgirl, Leah Sharibu, have again cried out to the international community to help secure her release.
They have asked Britain and the United States to put pressure on the Nigerian government to rescue Sharibu, who has been held by Boko Haram terrorists for five years.
They made the passionate appeal on Saturday in Yola, Adamawa State capital, as they marked the 19th birthday and 5th year of Sharibu in captivity.
Sharibu has been married to a top Boko Haram commander and had delivered a baby boy, according to a source close to the terrorists.
It was reported on January 25, 2020, that Leah Sharibu, a Christian girl kidnapped and held in Boko Haram captivity for over one year, had given birth to a baby boy.
On January 26,it was updated that Ahmad Salkida, a journalist who reports on terrorism, disclosed that indeed Leah Sharibu was now a mother.
However, speaking for the family on her 19th birthday, Dr Gloria Puldu, urged President Muhammadu Buhari not to renege on his promise to bring Sharibu back home to her parents.
She expressed concern that President Buhari might have given up on the rescue plan and possibly abandoned the teenager in terrorists’ captivity, seeing that the tenure of his administration was winding down.
She said, “It’s been five years now since Leah Sharibu was abducted by the Boko Haram insurgents at the Government Girls Science and Technical College Dapchi in Yobe state.
“Other abducted girls have been released by their abductors except for Leah who refused to denounce her faith and convert to Islam.
“The president has made repeated promises to secure her release since then, but as it looks, it appears our daughter has been abandoned. This administration has just a year to go and it would be a year of politicking and campaigns.
“It feels so painful that Leah is still with the terrorists, that’s why we’re appealing to the international community to help talk to Buhari. I think the United Kingdom, the United States and their allies can help get the girl back home to us.”
Sharibu was abducted three months before she turned 15 by Boko Haram along with 109 other schoolgirls on February 19, 2018. While all the other girls have been released, Leah was held back for refusing to convert to Islam.
Saharareporters
