Nigeria’s Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, on Friday left Abuja for Johannesburg to represent President Bola Tinubu at the G20 Leaders’ Summit, after the President opted to remain in the country to receive additional security briefings following a spate of violent attacks.
In a statement released by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications in the Office of the Vice-President, the Presidency confirmed that Tinubu postponed his planned trip to South Africa due to recent security incidents in Kebbi and Kwara States.
Nkwocha stated that President Cyril Ramaphosa, who currently chairs the G20, had invited Tinubu to the meeting scheduled for 22–23 November at the Johannesburg Expo Centre.
The gathering is expected to attract leaders of the world’s major economies, along with the European Union (EU), African Union (AU) and global financial institutions.
"President Cyril Ramaphosa, the South African leader who also serves as the current President of the G20 group had invited his Nigerian counterpart to participate in this year's edition.
"The Summit, scheduled to take place from Saturday, November 22nd, to Sunday, November 23rd, at the Johannesburg Expo Centre, brings together leaders from the world's top 20 economies, including the European Union, the African Union, financial institutions, among others," the statement read.
At the early hours of Friday, tragic struck Niger State where terrorists raided St Mary’s Papiri Private Catholic Secondary School in Agwara Local Government Area, abducting a still-undetermined number of students and teachers.
Multiple residents who visited the scene told journalists the raid was carried out between 2:00am and 3:00am in what they described as a coordinated operation.
Local officials, including Ahmed Abdullahi Rofia, Head of Disaster and Relief for Agwara LGA, and Bello Gidi, media aide to the council chairman, confirmed the incident.
Gidi said early reports suggested that “over 100 students and teachers” may have been taken, though community members offered varying accounts, with some saying “more than a dozen” were abducted.
Friday’s raid follows another abduction on Monday in neighbouring Kebbi State, where gunmen stormed the Maga Comprehensive Girls’ Secondary School, seizing about 25 female students and killing a staff member.
It was said that a school guard was also wounded as attackers opened fire while students prepared for the day.
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