Terrorists Still Closing Schools Despite ₦144.86bn Safe Schools Fund —Atiku Tells Tinubu

The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has criticised the Tinubu administration over reports that schools in about 40 local government areas have been shut due to insecurity, describing the development as evidence of the government’s failure to protect Nigerian children and guarantee access to education.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku raised concerns about the implementation of the ₦144.86 billion National Plan on Financing Safe Schools for 2023–2026.

“At a time when Nigeria is already battling a severe out-of-school crisis, insecurity is driving even more children from the classroom,” he said.

“If schools across about 40 local government areas cannot operate because government cannot guarantee the safety of pupils and teachers, Nigerians are entitled to ask a simple question: where is the ₦144.86 billion Safe Schools programme in all of this?”

The former vice president argued that appropriating funds and announcing programmes do not automatically translate into safety for pupils and teachers.

“Budgeting money is not the same thing as securing schools. Announcing programmes is not the same thing as protecting children. The true measure of a Safe Schools programme is whether our children can actually go to school safely. By that elementary test, the present approach is failing,” he added.

Atiku called on the Federal Government to publish a detailed account of the programme, including the amount mobilised and released, the agencies and contractors that received funds, the schools covered, security infrastructure provided and the measurable outcomes achieved.

He, however, said transparency alone would not address the deeper security challenge facing schools.

“What Nigeria requires is a completely different security philosophy,” Atiku stated.

“Under my administration, school security will not be treated as another Abuja contract-awarding programme. It will be integrated into a decentralised, intelligence-led security architecture built around the communities where these schools actually exist.”

According to him, an ADC-led government would establish functional early-warning and rapid-response systems around vulnerable schools, improve intelligence sharing among schools, communities and security agencies, and ensure that high-risk schools have clearly defined security and emergency-response plans.

“Local communities know their terrain. They know when unfamiliar people enter their communities and often see the warning signs before Abuja does. Our security architecture will make that local intelligence part of the national response rather than leaving communities helpless until an attack has already occurred,” he said.

Atiku also promised stricter accountability for school security spending.

“We will also insist on measurable outcomes for every naira committed to school security. Nigerians will know which schools have been protected, what infrastructure has been provided, who is responsible for maintaining it and which security formations are accountable for responding when threats arise,” he said.

“Safe Schools will be measured by children in classrooms, not billions in government documents.”

The former vice president warned that the closure of schools has consequences beyond education.

“Every school that closes creates another opening for poverty, child labour, early marriage, exploitation and radicalisation. Every child driven from the classroom becomes more vulnerable to the same criminal and extremist networks the government claims to be fighting. Protecting education is therefore itself a national security strategy,” he said.

He described it as indefensible that Nigeria could commit huge resources to a Safe Schools programme while armed groups still determine whether schools open or close.

Citing recent incidents in Borno State, Atiku said reports indicated that 36 students and a staff member of Government Day Secondary School, Lassa, in Askira/Uba Local Government Area, were abducted during examinations in late June, while 42 pupils reportedly remain missing following the May 15 attack in Mussa.

“When terrorists can decide whether Nigerian children go to school, they are exercising authority that belongs to the Nigerian state. That is not merely an education crisis. It is a surrender of state authority,” he said.

He also challenged President Bola Tinubu over previous statements suggesting that the government knows the forests where kidnappers and terrorists operate.

“And since Mr President says his government knows the forests where these kidnappers and terrorists operate, Nigerians are entitled to ask: what exactly are they still doing there?” he asked.

“Mr President should detail his security forces to those forests, rescue these children, and bring their abductors to justice. Intelligence that tells the government where terrorists are hiding but does not result in their capture or the rescue of their victims is of little comfort to parents whose children remain in captivity.”

Atiku stressed that the abducted pupils should not be reduced to statistics.

“These are not statistics. They are Nigerian children who should be sitting in classrooms, writing examinations, and planning their futures—not names on an endless list of the missing,” he said.

“Every additional day they remain in captivity is another indictment of a government that claims to know where the criminals are but has yet to bring the children home.”

He added that Nigerians are no longer interested in assurances that government knows where terrorists are hiding.

“Nigerians do not need another assurance that the government knows where the terrorists are. They want to know why the terrorists are still there—and why our children are still with them,” he said.

Outlining what he described as an alternative approach, Atiku said school security would be tied to a broader decentralisation of Nigeria’s security architecture, with communities formally incorporated into intelligence gathering and rapid-response mechanisms.

“Our alternative is straightforward: secure the communities, empower local intelligence, protect vulnerable schools, respond rapidly to threats, measure results, and account for every naira,” he said.

He further demanded that the Tinubu administration explain the utilisation of the ₦144.86 billion Safe Schools fund.

“President Tinubu must also account for the ₦144.86 billion and explain why, after all the announcements and appropriations, Nigerian parents are still being forced to choose between educating their children and keeping them alive,” he said.

“A government cannot announce billions for Safe Schools and expect Nigerians to applaud their failure while terrorists are shutting the schools. Budgetary allocations are not achievements. Press conferences do not protect children. The only result that matters is that a Nigerian child can leave home for school and return safely.”

Atiku concluded by saying that insecurity must not be allowed to undermine education in Nigeria.

“Nigeria cannot educate its way out of poverty if terrorists are allowed to lock the classroom door. Under our government, criminals will not determine when Nigerian schools open. The Nigerian government shall,” he said.