The parents of Leah Sharibu, the schoolgirl abducted in Dapchi, Yobe State, have asked President Muhammadu Buhari to fulfil his promise to secure their daughter’s release from their captors.
Leah’s parents, Nathan and Rebecca Sharibu, made the plea in an open letter signed by the Executive Director of LEAH Foundation, Gloria Puldu, on Sunday.
Leah Sharibu was one of the 110 female students of the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, who were abducted on February 19, 2018, by Boko Haram terrorists.
But while others were released by the terrorists following negotiations, Leah, then 14 years, is still being held captive because she refused to renounce her Christian faith.
According to Leah’s parents, two years after the telephone conversation in which President Buhari promised them that their daughter would soon be released as negotiations were ongoing, “Leah is now three years in captivity”.
They urged the president to take into consideration their feeling as parents not being able to see their child, adding that the entire world and indeed, the international community is waiting for him to fulfil his promise.
The letter read: “Sir, with deep pains in our hearts but gratitude to God Almighty who commands us to be grateful in every situation, we write this open letter to you concerning our daughter, Leah Sharibu, who as you well know is still in captivity in the hands of Boko Haram.
“February 19, 2021 marked three years that she was abducted alongside her secondary school mates whom you were able to secure their release on March 21, 2018, barely one month after their abduction.
“Mr. President, you have promised me on the phone that my daughter will soon be released because negotiations are going on and not long, Leah will be returned home. But it has been over two years since you made that promise and Leah is now three years in captivity.
“Sir, we plead with you to put yourself in our position and assume that Leah is your daughter. How would you feel knowing that she is in captivity just because she was courageous to refuse to renounce her faith?
“Leah Sharibu was one of the 110 female students of the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, who were abducted on February 19, 2018, by Boko Haram terrorists.”
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