Chibok: I Found Out GEJ Warned Then-Borno Gov Not To Let Those Girls Do Exams In Chibok -Oritsejafor

Speaking in an interview with Channels Television, Oritsejafor recounted that former President Goodluck Jonathan had reportedly advised relevant authorities, including the then-governor of Borno State, to relocate the students from Chibok to Maiduguri for their West African Examinations Council (WAEC) tests due to prevailing security concerns in the region at the time.

According to him, the recommendation was intended as a precautionary measure, given the escalating threat of insurgency in parts of Borno State, which had already seen repeated attacks attributed to Boko Haram. The suggestion, he said, was aimed at ensuring the safety of the students by moving them to a more secure location for their examinations.

However, Oritsejafor stated that the advice was ultimately not implemented by the relevant authorities. As a result, the students remained in Chibok, where they were later abducted in the widely condemned mass kidnapping that drew global attention and sparked international outrage.

He expressed regret over what he described as a missed opportunity to prevent the tragedy, emphasizing that the failure to act on security recommendations contributed to the outcome.

In his words: “I found out that he warned the then-governor and a few others not to let those girls stay in that place to do the exam they had to do and that they should move them to Maiduguri, which they didn’t do. They left them there and that was how those girls were abducted.”

The 2014 Chibok abduction remains one of the most significant security incidents in Nigeria’s recent history, with hundreds of schoolgirls taken by insurgents, an event that triggered global campaigns such as #BringBackOurGirls and continues to shape discussions on school safety and national security policy.

Oritsejafor’s remarks add another layer to the long-running public discourse on the decisions and security lapses that preceded the attack, as well as the broader challenges of coordinating effective responses to insurgency threats in affected regions at the time.