Could The ‘Surprised’ Call From President Buhari Have Rekindled Leah Sharibu’s Mom’s Hope?

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235 days after her daughter was taken captive, Mrs. Rebecca Sharibu, mom of the Government Girls Secondary and Technical School student, Leah Sharibu, who has been held hostage by Boko Haram terrorists since February 19, 2018; may have had her hope rekindled after she received a surprise call from Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari.

The middle-aged woman, who had been inconsolable since March 21 when 105 of the 110 original schoolgirls were returned to the village square by daring Boko Haram fundamentalists in trucks, for a moment didn’t know what to believe; not sure if truly it was the president on the line or someone else was playing a trick on her.

The terrorists had retained Leah after she reportedly refused to renounce Christianity and since February, the mom’s telephone number has been very busy, what with Christians who would often call to pray with her, journalists searching for updates on the plight of her daughter and well wishers calling to sympathize with her; but not one call from government was ever reported. Not even from the school where the young intelligent girl scored 9 distinctions, 3 upper credits and 1 lower credit in JSS examination in 2017.

Recall that a few days ago, Rebecca Sharibu had called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to help regain her daughter’s freedom following the October threat given by Boko Haram. (Read Here)

So one can understand Rebecca’s plight when she heard the deep Fulani voice of the president on the other end of the phone. Initially, she was silent during the monologue because she was at a loss even as the President consoled her family and assured her that the Federal Government would do its utmost for the safety and security of their daughter. “I convey my emotion, the strong commitment of my administration and the solidarity of all Nigerians to you and your family as we will do our best to bring your daughter home in peace and safety,” President Buhari reportedly said, assuring the mom that his heart was with her family, as that of the entire nation which continues to pray for the safe return of ‘our daughter, Leah’. There’s still no guarantee if the distraught mother of Leah heard one word of what the President said during that brief discussion, however, her phone had been switched off since after that presidential call.

According to Leah’s father, Mr. Nathan Sharibu, his wife must have switched her phone off because of too many people calling to confirm if truly president Buhari actually spoke to her. “To hear something like that from the President of the country is reassuring. She felt the same way to receive a call from the President”, Sharibu reportedly told Sunday Vanguard. Asked why the wife’s line was switched off, he said: “It’s because the calls were coming in torrents and she couldn’t cope with the number of calls from people who wanted to know whether it’s true that the President actually called her. The calls were disturbing her, that’s why she decided to put off her phone.” The father of the kidnapped girl went on: “The presidential call has somewhat reassured me that they will do something concerning my daughter soon. I am confident and hoping that they will hear the cry of a family after several months.”

“There is hope of her imminent release but, as a father, I still need well-meaning Nigerians to help us put more pressure on the Federal Government to make haste and release my daughter as soon as possible”. According to him, whether there is political undertone behind the presidential call “is not my business”. He added: “You know as parents, all we are crying for right now is for government to hasten to release our daughter to reduce the pain in the family. That’s why I am still calling on the Christian community all over the world to help us put more pressure on the Federal Government to ensure the release of the girl to continue her education like her colleagues. I appeal to President Buhari to do something urgently to release my daughter.”

Shortly after the report of the presidential phone call went viral, a fake report of Leah’s release to the leaders of her denomination, Evangelical Church Winning All, ECWA surfaced online but the Chairman of CAN in the 19 Northern States and Abuja, Rev. Yakubu Pam denied any such development. “It has come to our notice that some groups and individuals have been spreading the false news that Leah Sharibu has been released and currently in Jos. For the avoidance of doubt, I hereby wish to categorically state that she has not yet been released. Our consistent hope and prayer is that she should be released as soon as possible. Let us continue to pray for Leah and her release, her family and Nigeria as a whole. Thank you and God bless.” He however expressed hope that Leah may soon be released to her parents.

Asked if the presidential call was reassuring, he said: “Since the President said it as a father himself, let me say that we will not doubt him on this one because I know that all expectations from Christians in the North are on this issue. In our meetings, we don’t have any other request than to request for this lady to be released. We’ve damned all other requests. I believe he has considered that before he opened his mouth because I also want to say he should not just play a role of President here but also play the role of a father in northern Nigeria. Let history come to remember him that he did something for Christians that are in the North. I believe that will go a long way in whatever political career his name will be carrying in the future. I believe that he will do this for the sake of the unity of northern Nigeria and the sake of the unity of Nigeria as a whole. So I have the confidence that before he came out to speak, he must have considered enough. I believe that Leah will come back.”