Mrs. Alheri Emmanuel, mother of Deborah, who was gruesomely murdered by a mob at Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, by her schoolmates last Thursday, has vowed never to allow any of her remaining seven children go to school again to avoid the fate that befell her promising daughter.
She spoke as the husband and father of the slain Deborah, Mr. Emmanuel Garba, declared that as a good Christian, he and the family had resolved not to seek any redress from court over the loss of their daughter but leave everything to God.
Deborah’s mother, who spoke with Vanguard on Sunday, revealed that the family was blessed with eight children but noted that with the sad development, none of the seven surviving children would be allowed to go to school again in order to avoid a similar experience.
Mrs Alheri, in a heavy-laden voice, declared: “What has happened to me is my cross and I will surely carry it but non of my seven surviving children will go to school again.”
On what she wanted from the government, she simply said: “I don’t want anything from government. In fact, the family is not expecting anything from government. Almighty God will take control.”
Mrs. Alheri, who has just been discharged from hospital over the shock, however, said she was recuperating and assured that she would soon get out of the shock. Late Deborah was the eldest of the eight children of her parents.
The father, Mr Garba Emmanuel, also corroborated his wife’s declaration that the family would not go to court over the killing.
Speaking in Hausa, he said in a shaky voice: “The family will not go to court over the matter. Go to court to challenge human being or Almighty God over the issue? This is completely ruled out. God does not sleep. He knows what to do at the appropriate time and as the creator of everybody, we leave the case for Him to judge.
“Certainly, it is a big cross to bear but what can we do than to carry the cross and accept our fate in all totality as it has come.
“Beside receiving the shock over the gruesome death of my daughter, I had another bitter experience to go and personally transport her corpse from Sokoto to Niger State. It was the saddest moment of my life to go and pick the corpse of my daughter and brought her home in a chartered bus, for which I paid N120,000.
“I pleaded at the hospital that since the corpse had been burnt, they should help me with the remains, so it doesn’t decompose completely for us to bury her.
“I also pleaded with the DSS and they reasoned along with me and agreed to release her remains to me after signing some documents. Which moment can be as sad as this in one’s life? However, it is all over and it has become history.”