By Dipo Awojobi – The Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lai Muhammed, has denied claims that the recent release of the 21 Chibok girls was not a swap for some terrorists.
“This is not a swap, this was a release. They were flown to Kaduna from the location of their release,” Mohammed said. Adding that “the girls were released by 5.30 am Thursday, October 13, morning.”
Foreign media reports revealed that the girls were released following a negotiation brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss negotiators.
But Mohammed said the release of the girls was as a result of the effort of the federal government of Nigeria led by President Muhammadu Buhari to safe rescue.
He said that the release of the girls came after an established confidence between the leadership of the sect and some negotiators.
“The moment we heard a credible lead, the President gave the Department of State Services (DSS) and the authority to pursue their release.
“As soon as an agreement were reached, the parties agreed and a place of exchange was agreed upon,” Mohammed added.
The Minister also said that teams of medical doctors, psychologist, social workers and trauma experts have been put in place to attend to the girls once they arrive Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.
News broke out earlier that the deadly Boko Haram terror group had released 21 of the over 200 kidnapped school girls in the earlier hours of Thursday.
