Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday said President Muhammadu Buhari is excited about the return of the 21 Chibok girls freed by the Boko Haram insurgents.
Osinbajo spoke at the State House, Abuja, where he received the 21 girls who were freed on Thursday.
Below is the remarks of the Vice President at the ceremony which elicited tears not just by the girls but officials of the Presidency present:
I am sure you know that the whole country has been waiting for you to come back, all these many months, the whole country has been waiting that one day we will see you again and we are very happy to see you back!
We are going to bring your parents, your parents will be coming here to join you.
You can’t immediately be taken out of here because we need to be sure that you are in very good health.
I am sure are going to be very well taken care of. We have provided very good accommodation for you where you will stay where you will sleep and your parents will come and meet you there also.
We are also going to see to it that everything that you require going forward, perhaps your education, those who need to go back to school, those who need to find employment, we are going to make that we make all the provisions for you.
The Federal Government is very committed. The president in particular, has asked me to tell you, how excited he is. When you were away, he kept saying that if it were his daughter he wouldn’t even know what to do.
So we are all very excited that you are here. We are all happy that God has preserved your lives and brought you back.
We know that very soon all will be well and I am sure that when you meet with your parents they will be very excited to meet you.
We have already contacted them, they know where you are, and very soon they will be joining you here. So we are all looking forward to how you are going to settle in very nicely. The doctors have all the kinds of treatment that you will need, so you are all welcome back and we are all very excited to see.
Names of the freed Chibok girls:
Mary Usman Bulama
Jummai John
Blessing Abana
Luggwa Sanda
Comfort Habila
Maryam Basheer
Comfort Amos
Glory Mainta
Saratu Emmanuel
Deborah Ja’afaru (baby: Bukar Amos)
Rahab Ibrahim
Helen Musa
Maryamu Lawan
Rebecca Ibrahim
Asabe Goni
Deborah Andrawus
Agnes Gapani
Saratu Markus
Glory Dama
Pindah Nuhu
Rebecca Mallam