The Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Northern Region and the FCT, Rev. John Hayab, has revealed that one of the parents of the abducted schoolchildren in Niger State, identified simply as Mr. Anthony, has died after suffering a heart attack.
Rev. Hayab shared the development on Tuesday during an interview on ‘Politics Today’, a programme on Arise Television.
Recall that more than 200 pupils from a Catholic private school were seized by bandits, although about 50 reportedly escaped and have since been reunited with their families.
He said, “One of the parents of the abducted children from the school died yesterday. Mr. Anthony died of a heart attack following the abduction of his 3 children.”
Rev. Hayab explained that many people do not fully grasp the emotional and psychological pain the affected families are enduring. He said that when the situation is presented truthfully, it is not meant to attack anyone but to highlight the seriousness of the crisis.
He added, “The pains, the trauma, are still very fresh. We tried to speak with some of the parents today, but they were too afraid to talk. When I was speaking to the church leadership about this, it was truly heartbreaking.”
The cleric described the distress the children may be experiencing, noting that their daily routines and basic comforts have been completely disrupted.
“These are children who normally wake up to brush their teeth, have breakfast, tea break or lunch depending on the school system, and then dinner. These children have not slept well in the past few days. They haven’t done any of those things and some have not even taken their bath. You can imagine what they are going through,” he added.
Rev. Hayab also highlighted the torment of the parents, who have no clear information about the whereabouts or condition of their children.
“Now the parents themselves cannot say exactly where they are or what is happening to them. I think there is a mix-up of information in some of these conversations,” he said.
