By Stanley Onyekwere
There was pandemonium yesterday morning, in Nyanya, a suburb of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), as some parents invaded schools to pick their children following the hijack of one of the school buses of Divine International Academy, by unknown gunmen, in the area.
Consequently, most primary and secondary schools in Nyanya, Jikwoyi and were thrown into chaos, as parents rushed in different directions to evacuate their wards from schools in those areas.
Meanwhile, the FCT Administration has disclosed that the snatched bus was recovered later in the afternoon of the same day at Lafia, the Nasarawa state capital. Two men found in the bus were promptly arrested by security agencies.
According to the FCTA, contrary to reports in a section of the social media, no school child was abducted when the incident occurred, in the area or any other part of the FCT.
Earlier, in a swift reaction, the principal of the affected school (whose name could not be ascertained), was reported to have said on a live radio programme later in the morning, that the incident occurred at about after 7 a.m., when some unknown gunmen came and hijacked the school bus used to convey the pupils from their homes to the school.
However, the principal debunked the rumour, saying all the children had disembarked from the school bus and had entered inside the school premises before the alleged hijack of the bus.
The principal further said that, in the aftermath of the incident, many concerned parents invaded other schools in Nyanya to pick their children following the alleged hijack of a school bus in the area.
A statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media to the FCT minister, Mr. Nosike Ogbuenyi, quoted the Secretary, FCT Education Secretariat, Malam Kabir Usman, as saying relevant security agencies were immediately contacted and the school premises were secured.
The statement added that security already in place in other school premises were similarly enhanced as security agencies launched investigation into the incident.
“Residents of the FCT are enjoined to remain calm and vigilant as they go about their lawful activities. The Administration will continue to treat the security of lives and property in FCT as matters of utmost importance,” the statement said.
It was however gathered that another school in the area, called Haven Mariah School was also affected but the principal of the school dispelled the rumour, saying it is untrue.
It could be recalled that the suburb is struggling to recover from the deadly twin bomb blasts that killed scores and left many others injured some few days ago.
