After terrorists killed students in a dormitory attack in Yobe Sate, Nigerian authorities are taking measures to improve security around schools, including stepping up patrols and putting armed soldiers outside them and guarding school buses.
Government sources said, Monday, that the move aimed to restore confidence in the Western style schools that have seen scenes of bloody massacres by Boko Haram militants fighting for an Islamic state.
A presidency source said President Goodluck Jonathan met senior security aides, Sunday, to discuss how to respond to the latest deadly shift in tactics by the insurgents.
The source, who was present but who declined to be named, said: “At the meeting, they decided to provide special security cover for schools in the North-East and some other places prone to possible attacks.
”The president is not happy. He directed security chiefs to work out a new strategy so this doesn’t happen again.”
Gunmen had stormed an agricultural college in Gujba area of the state, Sunday, dragging students out of their beds and shooting them dead.
”For now, the state government has directed all round security surveillance on all schools across the state,” Mohammed Lamin, Yobe Commissioner for Lower Education, said.
He added that “the security agencies need to step up their operations to protect lives and property.”
