President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed that his administration will not relent in its efforts to protect Nigerians, declaring that every citizen, regardless of location, is entitled to safety under the Nigerian Constitution.
The President made the declaration in a statement released on Sunday via his official X account, where he again underscored security as a central priority of his government.
“Let me be clear: I will not relent. Every Nigerian, in every state, has the right to safety and under my watch, we will secure this nation and protect our people,” Tinubu wrote.
Tinubu disclosed that he cancelled his planned trip to the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, originally scheduled for November 22 and 23, in order to coordinate national security responses following two major abductions, the kidnapping of 25 schoolgirls in Kebbi State and the abduction of worshippers in Kwara State.
He delegated Vice President Kashim Shettima to represent Nigeria at the summit while he remained in the country to oversee ongoing rescue operations.
Providing updates on the recent incidents, President Tinubu announced the release of all 38 worshippers taken during last Tuesday’s attack on the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Oke-Isegun, in Eruku, Kwara State.
He also confirmed that 51 students abducted from a Catholic school in Niger State had been rescued as part of intensified nationwide search-and-rescue missions.
“Thanks to the efforts of our security forces over the last few days, all the 38 worshippers abducted in Eruku, Kwara State have been rescued.
”I am equally happy that 51 out of the missing students of the Catholic School in Niger State have been recovered,” the President said.
Tinubu added that he is receiving continuous updates from frontline commanders and monitoring security developments across the country.
Earlier in the week, the President instructed security agencies to ramp up preventive deployments in vulnerable areas and pursue bandits responsible for recent attacks.
Last Thursday, he ordered the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Kebbi State to lead efforts to secure the release of the abducted schoolgirls.
Tinubu commended the military, police, intelligence agencies and other operatives for what he described as swift and coordinated action in recent rescue operations.
