As 12 ransomed Chibok girls graduate from American University Nigeria, international human rights lawyer Emmanuel Ogebe lauds their Mother’s Day triumph over terror. He also reveals, in this piece, details of US-based Chibok girls’ successes whom he brought to America

This weekend, arguably the largest graduation of Chibok girls of the 2014 mass abduction saga occurred, as a dozen of them earned bachelor’s degrees at American university of Nigeria, Yola.

This latest graduation is a significant milestone firstly as it represents the first graduands from the group of Chibok girls ransomed back from Boko Haram terrorists after several years in captivity.

It will be recalled that out of 276 schoolgirls abducted on April 14, 2014 in the world’s longest-running school mass abduction, a first batch of 57 escaped by their own effort at that initial time.

Due to their fear of returning to school, especially some for whom Chibok was their second school attack, as well as continuing risk, the First Batch of Escaped Girls relocated to schools in Jos, Kaduna and Yola while I sponsored some to the United States to continue their education.

However the miraculous emergence of Amina Ali and her baby from captivity after two years rekindled hope and a proof of life video unleashed a chain of events that ultimately led to the ransom of over 100 girls in 2016 and 2017 (the Second batch “Ransomed Girls”.)

Notwithstanding the joyous release, the return of Amina Ali and Maryam Maiyanga in 2016 with children raised a new dimension to the recovery and recuperation of the girls – they were girls no more! Some of the Chibok girls were now Moms.

We were bringing back not just our girls but “our girls and their kids” (BBOG&B!)

Although the 21 girls released that same year, in a deal brokered by the Swiss, came back childless – having refused to convert to Islam and be forcefully married – it was now evident that some like Amina and Maryam (a Christian and Muslim) who had “married” in captivity still sought freedom with their children.

This is a very important fact because of the brutal caste system practiced by Boko Haram. Muslim Chibok girls like Maryam were the top of the pack, highly favored and quickly married and accepted by the terrorists.

The discriminatory treatment started from the very beginning. After a truck broke down, the terrorists crammed as many girls as possible into another already girls-laden truck.

When three couldn’t fit in, Boko Haram asked the first girl her religion. She was Muslim. They freed her to go. The second girl was Christian but claimed she was Muslim and was also freed. However the third girl, a Christian, stood by her faith and the terrorists debated whether to execute her on the spot before finally letting her go. So from the onset, the Muslim girls knew of their favored status and some actually restrained the Christians who tried to escape from the moving trucks. We’ll call this elite group the “Maryams.”

Then, in captivity, Christians like Amina were pressured and even tortured to convert to Islam and forcefully married becoming second class “Madams” Muslims-in-training. Let’s call them the “Aminas.”

And finally some of the girls refused still – despite witnessing the execution by stoning of their classmate who chose to sing hymns rather than convert. These later group were made slaves to the “madams” above. Let’s call them “the Leahs.”

It is for this second reason that this weekend’s graduation is doubly significant. Not only did these young women brave returning to school after two years of terrorist captivity but some just graduated as mothers or expectant mothers having chosen to marry and be educated simultaneously after their return.

Choice one – they bravely chose slavery rather than renounce their faith and ultimately won freedom; then, two, they chose to finish their education and, three, some chose to start families at the same time.

Their success this weekend is a culmination of multiple hard and even torturous sacrifices and it is fitting that it was Mother’s Day – an epitome of the most powerful human force on earth – the strength of a mother.

A fourth statement of their action is - the terrorists saw in them only breeding value bereft of education but they proved they had capacity for more – development of body and brain after preservation of spirit!

There are perhaps three historic ironies of this saga:

- First, that the girls who chose not to bow, (the Leahs) ultimately gained freedom to choose an academic life far better than what they’d have had prior to abduction; -that the Leahs and their “madam” classmates (Maryams/Aminas) who bowed still sought and found freedom and education and

-the madams who escaped laid the foundations for the revised recovery programs that they and future escaped girls (Leahs) would follow.

Six months after she was abducted from Chibok, Amina returned as a weapons-bearer when the terrorists attacked her community. In her native Kibaku language, she identified herself to an old woman and gave her cowries to give her mother from her. Amina was one of only two surviving children of 11 Binta, a widow, had had. It was to be a powerful proof of life and a downpayment on an epic future flight to freedom of Amina who as yet had no child.

The tough transition program for Amina at the presidential villa though checkered helped chart a recuperation course for returnees. This included psychosocial support, religious non-indoctrination, family reconnection and continuing education as the ransomed girls had more harrowing hurdles to overcome than the Escaped girls.

2021 was special as four of the 12 victims of Boko Haram who I brought to the US graduated from various universities across America.

Three Chibok girls Joy Bishara and Lydia Pogu who came to America on August 31, 2014 ; Palmatah Mutah, who came to US in September 2014 and Ms Zion Umar, daughter of assassinated CAN Secretary for Borno State who came to the US in September 2015.

Ms Mutah & Ms Zion Umar were the first of the 12 schoolgirls to attain community college associate degrees (2019 and 2017) before obtaining a Bachelors (B.Sc) and a Masters (MBA/M.Sc) respectively both in the medical sciences in 2021.

However years after the Government of Nigeria took away five of the Chibok girls from the schools I had placed them in in 2016, to the Murtala Muhammad Foundation, some finally attained academic achievement of note in 2024, when three graduated with a bachelor’s degree and associate degrees – three years and five years behind their trail blazing classmate Ms Mutah.

Also in 2024, a Chibok girl who graduated from the Bethel school, Jos program and came to US earned her doctorate degree surpassing even the U.S.-based girls. Dr Godiya Simon and Dinah Lawan (Masters).

Prior to that Mary Katambi was an outstanding graduate from American University of Nigeria, Yola in 2021.

CHIBOK HISTORICAL RECORDS SET

First Chibok girls to earn high school diploma in America 2017 – Deborah Ishaya and Amina Thlawur

First Chibok girl to obtain associate degree in America 2019 – Palmatah Mutah

First Chibok girl to obtain bachelor’s degree 2021 in America – Palmatah Mutah

First Chibok girl to obtain bachelor’s degree in American University of Nigeria, Yola 2021 – Mary Katambi

First Chibok girls to obtain master’s degrees in America 2022 – Joy Bishara and Lydia Pogu

First Chibok girl to obtain a doctorate degree in America 2024 – Godiya Simon.

Largest number of Chibok girls to graduate at once at AUN – 2026 Rifkatu Solomon & 11 others

None of the five girls taken over by Murtala Mohammed Foundation set any academic record. Of the above US records set, only #6 was not brought to US by me.

On this Mother’s Day, I commend my wife through whose home about 30 people have come to America – over half of whom were victims of persecution. I commend the American mothers who hosted and mentored them. I commend AUN for an impressive feat most especially President Frazier for achieving in a few years with limited resources what could not be achieved in a decade with bountiful resources.

But I also celebrate my mum and grandmum. As his dying wish, her father who had converted to Christianity from Islam requested my grandmother to educate my mom.

The poor widow struggled to educate her and Maryamu (nee Madaki) became the first female medical doctor in northern Nigeria overcoming both the misogyny of Muslim and Christian systems that discounted girl education.

But for them, I would not have grown up to value girl child education or have the vision to educate rural northern girls abroad, without having a school of my own, who infinitely excelled abroad surpassing those at home. Incidentally, my mum achieved her iconic record in medical school while an expectant mother.

I call on:

1. The Federal Government of Nigeria to grant the graduating Chibok girls an exemption waiver from the National Service in view of their lost years in captivity or alternatively to grant them a service opportunity in the institution of their choice or automatic employment

2. AUN to grant the classmate of the graduands who died prematurely a posthumous degree

3. US embassy to reverse the visa renewal denial of another of their former classmates to enable her complete her education

•Emmanuel Ogebe, ESQ writes from Washington USA.