Mrs Rebecca Sharibu, mother of Leah Sharibu has revealed her feelings as her daughter turns 18 on Friday, May 14, 2021.
Leah was one of the 110 schoolgirls of Government Girls’ Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe State who were kidnapped in February 2018.
PUNCH reported Rebecca as lamenting that the thought of her daughter spending yet another birthday in the bandits’ den is too much of a pain to describe.
She explained that they had initially planned to mark Leah’s 18th birthday with Mrs Foluke Adeboye as they had already engaged in getting support through protests, conferences, calling on the international community, and raising prayers.
She said;
“We are in deep pains. We are not happy. It is not something to be happy about. We came here (RCCG Headquarters) because a programme was planned to mark Leah’s 18th birthday with Mummy (Mrs Foluke Adeboye). We had engaged in advocacy through protests, conferences, calling on the international community, and raising prayers.
“We were then advised that instead of just going to the government in protest as usual and talking, with everything falling on deaf ears, we could do what we started when we marked three years of Leah’s captivity – quiet spiritual prayers – so that we could have the attention of the entire Nigerian church in prayer. But then, a book titled ‘Leah: Hero of Jesus’ was written by Dr Gloria Puldu and Rev Peter Fretheim in Leah’s honour.
“They wanted some people to give their views concerning her act of faith. When they got in touch with our spiritual father in RCCG, he invited us to see how the advocacy could be moved to the spiritual.
We took that advice wholeheartedly and came to the camp. When we came, Mummy (Mrs Adeboye) was excited and wanted to pray with us, Leah’s parents. Actually, Daddy (Pastor Enoch) Adeboye wrote the foreword of the book.
“They said it would be good for us to come and have the book launched and receive the blessing of Mummy as the host and mother of the day, to send a message that the church in Nigeria is one.
The RCCG was planning something big but everything was put on hold because of what just happened with the passing of Daddy and Mummy’s first son”.
“The event has now been postponed in respect of the departed and our father and mother in the Lord,” she said.
When asked if she still has hope that her daughter will be released, she stated that she believes strongly that Leah will return one day.
“Yes, by the grace of God. I have not lost hope because God is in control and people are praying. I have the hope that one day, I will see my daughter again,” she said.
