“I am calling on the president to pity me” – Leah Sharibu speaks from captivity

Leah Sharibu, the only Christian among the abducted 119 students of Government Girls Secondary School, Dapchi, Yobe state, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to save her from captivity.

Leah, who was kidnapped in February, also appealed that her family members be assisted.

All the girls who were captured were subsequently released, except five who reportedly died in detention, but Sharibu was held back for “refusing to renounce her faith”.

The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), a breakaway faction of Boko Haram, has kept her in captivity for seven months, sparking public outrage.

The federal government had said it was making efforts to secure her release.

Clad in hijab, sewn from a light brown material and seated alone on a mat patterned in pink, Sharibu spoke with measured calmness

She spoke in Hausa in a 35 seconds audio, reproduced here:

“I am Leah Sharibu, the girl that was abducted in GGSS Dapchi. I am calling on the government and people of goodwill to intervene to get me out of my current situation,” she said.

“I also plead to the members of the public to help my mother, my father, my younger brother and relatives. Kindly help me out of my predicament. I am begging you to treat me with compassion, I am calling on the government, particularly, the president to pity me and get me out of this serious situation. Thank you.”

Sources say the audio as well as pictures were part of the proof of life requirement in a possible renewed negotiation efforts between the government and ISWAP members.