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LEAH SHARIBU, THE VOICE OF DEFIANCE

A non-governmental organization, 1001+ Voices Initiative for People Empowerment, has described Leah Sharibu, the Dapchi schoolgirl still being held in captivity by Boko Haram, as the new voice of defiance deserving a national honour. Unlike many of our leaders, Leah decided to stand up against terrorism, religious extremism, bigotry and gagging of the girl child. Leah Sharibu, is one of the more than a 100 female students of the Government Girls’ Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State who were abducted from their school by Boko Haram on February 19, 2018.The sect later released about 100 girls, but kept Leah captive, simply because she refused to renounce her Christian faith and accept Islam.

The kidnapped teenage student, Leah Sharibu, will today, Monday, May 14, 2018 mark her 15th birthday in the custody of her captors.

It is now almost two months since the Nigerian government negotiated the release of the 105 abducted Dapchi girls.

A representative of 1001 plus voices, Mr. Ide Okon Owodiong-Idemeko, described Leah as the epitome of courage in the face of terrible danger. ‘’She has stared down the barrel of the guns of one of the world’s worst barbaric terrorist organizations and refused to budge. She has stood up for her rights and remains defiant when most mortals would have capitulated.’’ Nigeria, we all know, is a multi-religious state and no one has the right to force another to embrace any religion. As a nation, we have also been fighting for the rights of the girl child to quality education and even though we have recorded significant progress, there is still a long way to go. In this light, this courageous girl, who should be in school studying quietly, is regrettably traumatized every second she is in captivity but we are happy she has stood up to be a voice for the voiceless and a beacon of hope for all Nigerians – youths and adults alike.

This group recollects that in 1955, an African American woman, Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white man. She unwittingly became the face of the civil rights movement in the USA. Similarly, Leah has become a ‘symbol of the struggle for a better Nigeria. ‘’She has made us look more closely at ourselves and find out what is wrong with our society.Ours is a society where people’s basic rights are trampled upon with impudence. It is a society with an alarming level of religious intolerance. It is a society where workers are owed salaries for up to a year and nobody bats an eyelid. A society where pensioners, after serving their beloved country for decades, are left to die under the scorching sun as they queue up for days to receive their  pension. A society where human lives have been reduced to nothing through wanton maiming and killings all over the nation.’’

 

The group urged Nigerians not to be intimidated but stand up for their rights and demand equity, peace and progress from its leaders. ‘’We have been docile for too long. We are specialists in calling on God to fight our battles, even thoughhe has adequately equipped us to do so.God gave us brains and the ability to do seemingly impossible tasks. So calling on Him to do these things for us means we are sleeping on duty.’’
1001 voices advised the government to note the call by MrBill Gates, billionaire philanthropist and founder of Microsoft, to improve the life of Nigeria. Nigeria’s greatest asset is its human capital. There is a vibrant reservoir of talent waiting to be unleashed and until the leadership recognizes this, Nigerians will continue to wallow in the dark.
We therefore call on Nigerians to put on their thinking cap. It is time to be proactive. It is time to choose a new generation of leaders – and hold them accountable.The very first step is to get your PVC. It’s the only way your voice can be heard through the ballot box.

 

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