The Gambia: President Buhari hosts West African leaders in Abuja Monday; Recommits to return of Chibok school girls, 1000 days after abduction

In furtherance of his mandate as mediator, President Muhammadu Buhari will, Monday, January 9, 2017, be hosting four other West African leaders to a meeting aimed at avoiding violence and preserving democracy in The Gambia.
A statement by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media and Publicity) said that President Buhari, and the immediate past President of Ghana, John Mahama as Mediator and Co-Mediator respectively, have also been mandated by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to ensure the safety of the President-elect, Adama Barrow and ensure a peaceful handover of power on January 19 this year.

The meeting in Abuja is following the one in Accra on the sidelines of the inauguration of that country’s President which expressed the readiness of the leaders of the sub-region to continue the pursuit of dialogue with the leaders of The Gambia.
The Presidents of Liberia and Senegal, the Vice President of Sierra-Leone and ex-President Mahama are expected at the meeting in Abuja.
Meanwhile, as the country, nay, the world, commemorates the 1,000th day of the abduction of schoolgirls from Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, President Buhari has recommitted the Federal Government to securing the release of the youngsters kidnapped by Boko Haram insurgents.

In a statement by Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), President Buhari said: “We are grateful to God that on this landmark day, we are not completely in the depths of despair, but buoyed with hope that our daughters will yet rejoin their families and loved ones. Three of them have been recovered by our diligent military, while the freedom of 21 others was secured through engagement with their captors. We are hopeful that many more will still return as soon as practicable.”
He reiterated his pledge, pronounced many times in the past, that government would not spare any effort to reunite the girls with their families.
“I salute the fortitude of the distraught parents. As a parent also, I identify with their plight. Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months, months turned to years, and today, it is 1,000 days. The tears never dry, the ache is in our hearts. But hope remains constant, eternal, and we believe our pains will be assuaged. Our hopes will not be shattered, and our hearts will leap for joy, as more and more of our daughters return. It is a goal we remain steadfastly committed to,” the President added.
On the occasion of the 1,000 days, he commends all who have been in the vanguard for the recovery of the girls, both nationally and internationally, stressing:
“Someday soon, we will all rejoice together. Our intelligence and security forces are unrelenting, and whatever it takes, we remain resolute. Chibok community, Nigeria, and, indeed, the world, will yet rise in brotherhood, to welcome our remaining girls back home. We trust God for that eventuality.”