Former President Goodluck Jonathan has admitted that the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls in 2014 remains a painful scar on his legacy that he will “die with.”
Gatekeepers News reports that Jonathan spoke in Abuja on Friday at the launch of Scars: Nigeria’s Journey and the Boko Haram Conundrum, a memoir written by former Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor.
Praising Irabor as “a soldier who stood for truth and never played politics with security,” Jonathan reflected on his presidency and the tragedy that drew global outrage.
“One of the major scars on my government is the Chibok Girls,” he said.
“As Bishop Kukah said, no plastic or cosmetic surgeon can remove it. It is a scar I will die with.”
‘Boko Haram More Complex Than Many Think’
Jonathan recalled that Boko Haram first emerged in 2009 while he was Vice President, before escalating during his presidency.
“I battled Boko Haram for five years as President,” he said. “I thought Buhari would wipe them out quickly, but they remain.”
He argued that the insurgency is more complex than widely believed and called for a review of Nigeria’s strategy:
“We must approach Boko Haram differently. The carrot and stick method may be required. Sometimes they even had more munitions than our soldiers. That does not reflect the actions of hungry villagers. External hands are clearly involved in sustaining them.”
Lingering Scars of Chibok
The 2014 abduction of 276 girls from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, sparked the #BringBackOurGirls movement and international condemnation.
More than a decade later, 189 have either escaped or been released, but over 80 girls remain missing. Survivors continue to face stigma, trauma, and disrupted education, with some returning home as mothers of children born in captivity.
Jonathan’s government was widely criticised for its slow response and reluctance to accept foreign aid. Civil society groups accused his administration of politicising the tragedy.
Defending his silence at the time, Jonathan said it was to protect sensitive investigations and intelligence operations.
The Federal Government has maintained that securing the release of the remaining Chibok girls and Leah Sharibu, abducted in 2018, remains a national priority.
