Federal Government has turned down Boko Haram’s request for prisoners’ swap as condition for the release of over 200 female students it abducted from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State on April 14, 2014.
Leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, had in a new video yesterday, paraded some of the girls and demanded the release of insurgents being held and convicted for acts of terrorism across the country before freeing the girls.
But in reaction to Shekau’s request, Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro told Agence French Presse, AFP that federal government would not negotiate with a criminal gang.
He said: “The issue in question is not about Boko Haram… giving conditions.”
Also yesterday, Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima said he had information on the whereabouts of the kidnapped schoolgirls.
Governor Shettima, who disclosed this to the British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC, said that he had passed the information on the sighting of the girls to the military authorities for verification.
The governor doubted claims that the missing girls had been taken to any of Nigeria’s neighbouring countries.
According to him, the girls were still in Nigeria and had not been taken either to Chad or Cameroun.
Shekau, who dumped his earlier threat to sell the abducted girls, said: “We will never release them (the girls) until after you release our brethren.”
Shekau in the fresh 27-minute video, which AFP relayed, said that the schoolgirls had been converted to Islam and would only be released when the government freed imprisoned insurgents.
In the previous video, Shekau had threatened to sell the girls as slaves, but yesterday he claimed that they had been converted to Islam.
Shekau, in the video, showed over 130 of the Chibok girls wearing full-length hijabs, praying in an unknown location.
The video also showed three girls being interviewed, with two of them confirming that they had been converted to Islam from Christianity while the other said she is a Muslim. The girls, however, said that they had not been hurt.
Shekau in the video said: “These girls, these girls you occupy yourselves with… we have indeed liberated them. These girls have become Muslims.”
The list of 180 of the students released by Kaduna-based President/Founder of Old Time Revival Hour and the immediate-past chairman of Northern States Christian and Elders Forum, NOCSEF, showed that 165 of the girls are Christians.
There is, however, no indication of when or where the video was taken, although the location appears to be rural.
Last Friday, human rights activist, Shehu Sani, set the tone for what to expect from Boko Haram over the abducted students when he hinted that the group may demand prisoner swap for the Chibok girls.
Sani, who was a negotiator with Boko Haram, had said the group would use the abducted girls as “bargaining chips” for the release of its detained members.
As Nigeria continues to receive offers of assistance from more world powers to rescue the students, France has proposed a security summit on Boko Haram to be attended by Nigeria and her neighbouring countries.
Among the countries that have reached out to Nigeria on the kidnapped students are the United States of America, USA, United Kingdom, France, Canada, China and Israel.
France’s President Francois Hollande who said he had spoken with President Goodluck Jonathan, offered to host the summit.
He said: “I suggested with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, a meeting of Nigeria’s neighbouring countries. If the countries agree, it should take place next Saturday.”
Nigeria’s neigbouring countries which may attend the proposed summit are Cameroun, Niger Republic and Chad. Hollande’s aides said the US, UK and the European Union, EU, may attend the summit.
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