Zamfara: No Ransom Paid To Secure Release Of Schoolgirls – Matawalle

The Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, on Wednesday disclosed that the state government did not pay ransom to secure the release of the abducted students of the Government Secondary School, Jangebe.

Matawalle disclosed this on Wednesday during an interview on Channels TV.

He said, “There is nothing in exchange for the release; we use those (bandits) that are repented. When we use them, they engage them and I said they should ask them why they did that?.”

“Some of these guys did not accept our peace accord, they are many. Some of them even refused to show their faces to the government. But those that have a good intention of repenting and coming back to society, they are working with the security agencies to make sure that the state is safe.”

The Zamfara State Governor when asked how he felt following the release of the schoolgirls said he was extremely happy with the development.

He explained that his administration received the students after engaging the bandits, noting that he lost sleep within the period.

“I am very happy with the situation; I can’t measure how happy I was at that moment. On that very day, I did not sleep because they left Gusau around 11 am in the morning to the area where the children were kept.

“They did not come back to the state capital till after 4 am in the morning which we were all waiting for them in the Government House,” he added.

Meanwhile, a clash between parents of the schoolgirls abducted last week and security agents have left one person dead and many others injured in Jangebe, Zamfara State.

It was gathered that the Zamfara State Government had taken the schoolgirls for counselling and rehabilitation after they had regained freedom from bandits.