Two videos of victims of abduction in Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele, and Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Ogbomoso Yawota area in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, pleading with the federal and state governments to come to their rescue, went viral on social media on Sunday, sparking outrage as the Senate and Yoruba leaders demanded urgent action from the government to secure their release.
The PUNCH reports that terrorists on motorbikes attacked Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota; Community Grammar School, Ahoro-Esinele; and L.A. Primary School, all in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, around 9:30 am on Friday, May 15.
The armed hoodlums abducted pupils, students and staff members, including Alamu.
The police also confirmed the killing of an Assistant Headmaster identified as Mr Adesiyan during the attack, while an okada rider was reportedly shot dead after resisting attempts by the attackers to seize his motorcycle.
One of the viral videos on Sunday was from the abducted Principal of Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele, Mrs Alamu, and a teacher at Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Temitope Mary Dahunsi.
In one of the videos sighted on Sunday by The PUNCH, Mrs Alamu appealed to the federal and state governments, the Christian Association of Nigeria and well-meaning Nigerians to intervene and secure their release.
Speaking from captivity, the visibly distressed school administrator said she and several students and staff members had remained with their abductors since the attack on Friday.
Alamu said, “I am Mrs Alamu F.R. I am the Principal of Community High School in Oriire Local Government of Oyo State. On Friday, around 9:30 am, we were attacked by a certain group of people and a good number of us were abducted, the staff and the students as well, and we have been here since Friday.”
She pleaded with authorities to ensure a peaceful resolution to prevent loss of lives.
Mrs Alamu added, “Today, I am making this video to ask for help from everyone, starting from the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Oyo State Government, Seyi Makinde, the Christian Association of Nigeria, and all well-meaning Nigerians, that they should come to our help and settle this thing peacefully so that our lives will not be lost.”
In the second viral video, Dahunsi called on both the federal and state governments to come to their immediate rescue, lamenting that the abducted children had been crying since Friday.
She said, “I am Dahunsi Temitope Mary, I’m from Ibadan, working at First Baptist Church, Ogbomosho Yawota area.
“Yesterday (Friday), people came to our school, and we were kidnapped. Both the teachers and the children. We are all here, we need help from the Federal Government and state government, from both the church, the Baptist Church Yawota and the community. So that these people will release us, please help us.
“We need help from our President Bola Tinubu, our state governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde and all Nigerians. The children are here crying so that we will not waste our lives. Please help us, don’t neglect us.”
The state police command \confirmed the receipt of the viral videos.
In a statement released by the state Police Public Relations Officer, Olayinka Ayanlade, in Ibadan, the state capital, the police said, “Consequently, the footage is presently undergoing comprehensive forensic examination to determine its authenticity and further aid ongoing investigations, rescue operations, as well as the identification and arrest of the perpetrators behind the heinous act.”
The command reassured residents of its unwavering commitment towards ensuring the safe return and reunification of all abducted persons with their families.
“To this end, intensive operational, intelligence-driven, and tactical efforts in collaboration with other security agencies are ongoing to secure the victims unharmed and bring all those responsible to justice,” the statement added.
The command, therefore, urged members of the public to remain calm, law-abiding, and continue to cooperate with the police and other security agencies by providing credible and timely information capable of assisting ongoing operations and investigations.
“Members of the public are equally advised to refrain from sharing unverified information, misleading content, or materials capable of heightening tension and creating unnecessary panic, as such situations are often exploited by criminal elements and enemies of peace to further their sinister objectives.
“Consequently, anyone with useful information capable of aiding the ongoing investigation, rescue operations, and arrest of the perpetrators is encouraged to promptly relay the same to the appropriate authorities or nearest security agency for immediate action,” the statement read.
Senate demands action
Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, on Sunday condemned the abduction of 87 students and teachers in Borno and Oyo states, describing the attacks as a threat to Nigeria’s future.
Bamidele, who is also the Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution, said the incidents further underscored the urgency of establishing state police to strengthen the country’s security architecture.
In a statement issued by his Directorate of Media and Public Affairs, the Senate leader called for coordinated measures to secure schools nationwide and tackle the growing out-of-school children crisis.
While the Oyo school incident happened on Friday, Boko Haram insurgents reportedly attacked Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in Askira/Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, abducting 42 students.
Reacting to the incidents, Bamidele described the abductions as “an attack on the future of Nigeria,” promising that the National Assembly would fast-track the process for the creation of state police.
According to him, the 10th National Assembly is already at an advanced stage in the ongoing constitutional amendment process aimed at paving the way for state police.
He explained that after the National Assembly concludes its part, the proposal would be transmitted to state Houses of Assembly for approval by at least two-thirds before it could take effect.
The Senate leader appealed to state governments and legislatures to treat the state police proposal as a matter of national importance rather than subjecting it to partisan or ethno-religious considerations.
Bamidele also urged both federal and state governments to fully implement the Safe School Initiative as a temporary measure to curb insecurity in schools and address the rising number of out-of-school children, which he said stood at 18.3 million nationwide.
He said, “The incessant abduction of students and teachers is a tragic national concern that negates our national development indices. We cannot and must not allow it to continue.
“At the National Assembly, we will rise against this trend and put an end to it through the instrumentality of legislation.
“As soon as the National Assembly resumes plenaries on June 2, we will perfect all outstanding legislative initiatives that have been introduced to decisively address security challenges in the federation.
“One of such initiatives is the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution that seeks to establish state police, which is now at an advanced stage.
“Another is the amendment of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, aimed at strengthening the system of consequence in the country’s justice sector and discouraging heinous crimes nationwide.”
‘Yorubaland under siege’
The pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, on Sunday, expressed dismay and charged state governments, saying, “Yorubaland is now under siege.”
The organisation, in a statement released by its National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, also sympathised with families of the victims of the attacks.
Ajayi said Afenifere leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, “was saddened to hear this unfortunate incident which occurred the same week he marked his 100th year on earth.”
Ajayi said, “He (Pa Fasoranti) sympathised with the victims and their families just as he prayed for the quick recovery of those who were injured.
“Besides, he expressed the hope that a total stop would be put to the life-threatening insecurity situation in the country without further delay.”
Ajayi said the latest attacks reinforced growing fears that the terrorists appeared determined to overrun the South-West and, ultimately, the entire South.
“The actions of South-West governors in recent times do not suggest that they appreciate the enormity of the responsibility they shoulder concerning the security of their land.
“In view of the fact that the primary duty of government is the security and welfare of the people, governments in South-Western states of Nigeria must prove that they are alive to their constitutionally assigned responsibilities.
“Everything must be done to ensure that no area in the region experiences an attack by kidnappers and bandits anymore,” he said.
The organisation listed some incidents of terrorism in recent times to underscore the call for urgent action.
“Among the instances he (Fasoranti) cited were the confirmation by Ogun State Police command on Tuesday, May 12, of the abduction of three members of a family by suspected gunmen at Ipojo Golden Estate, Oke-Eri, in Ijebu Ode.
“On Wednesday last week, the police and vigilante operatives disrupted an alleged N10m ransom collection operation by a suspected kidnapping gang in Otefon Village Forest, Atiba Local Government Area, Oyo State.
“On April 18, heavily-armed gunmen invaded a church during an open-air crusade in Eda Oniyo, Ekiti State, killing a pastor and abducting several worshippers.
“Gunmen stormed Woro and Nuku in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State on February 3 and 4, killing many and abducting more than 170 people.
“On May 2, gunmen invaded a Police Mobile Force camp in Tenebo, Kaiama LGA, killing three police officers.
“On the same day, a 60-year-old trader was kidnapped at Jinarere area of Ibadan by four masked gunmen just as one Alhaji Aleshinloye, a businessman, was kidnapped in Irawo, Atisbo Local Government Area of Oyo State last week.
“Earlier, a schoolgirl was kidnapped at the Challenge area of Ibadan, while a retired teacher was killed on his farm in Ago Are, Oke-Ogun, Oyo State.
“On November 18, 2025, Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Ekiti LGA of Kwara State, was attacked by terrorists during a Tuesday evening service, killing three worshippers and abducting 38 others, including a pastor.
“Four passengers were abducted along the Igbeti–Kisi Road, though they were later rescued by police, Amotekun and Operation Burst. The list of terror acts keeps growing,” Afenifere stated.
The organisation declared that the latest attacks reinforced growing fears that the terrorists appeared determined to overrun the South-West and, ultimately, the entire South.
“The chilling reality thus detonated the earlier notion that the southwestern part of Nigeria was a safe haven considered relatively insulated from extremist violence that is prevalent in some other parts of the country,” it added.
Ajayi said what was happening now seemed to have been anticipated, going by the action taken by the then South-West governors who, under the leadership of the late Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, established the South-West Security Network, codenamed Amotekun, on January 9, 2020.
“The initiative was designed to safeguard the six states of the region,” he added.
Afenifere, therefore, commended the swift visit of Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Disu, to the scene of the incident and the inauguration of the Police’s Violence Crime Response Unit in Ibadan by Makinde on Saturday, May 16.
The group expressed the hope that the initiatives would lead to the prevention of crimes, including banditry.
He recalled that governors of Ondo, Ekiti, Osun, Ogun, Lagos and Oyo met in Ibadan on Monday, November 24, 2025, on what was dubbed a security summit.
The group said, “The objective of the meeting was mainly on how to secure the South-West. In February, the Ogun State Government launched closed-circuit television hubs for security purposes, just as Ondo and Ekiti states also announced various steps to stem insecurity in their respective states.
“Earlier in the year, Oyo announced the purchase of two DA 42 MNG Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance aircraft at a cost of N7.7bn.
“Announcing the purchase, Makinde said that the aircraft, when fully operational, will provide wide aerial coverage across Oyo and extend surveillance to vulnerable corridors linking Oyo and Kwara states as areas often exploited by criminal elements due to the porosity of the borders.
“Were the aircraft deployed, what happened last week would have been nipped in the bud because the planes were reported to be fitted with sophisticated surveillance technology capable of identifying targets from both high and low altitudes, which allows for real-time intelligence gathering, improving rapid response and precision security operations.”
Afenifere wondered what had become of the resolutions by the six governors, the CCTV erected by Ogun, the surveillance aircraft purchased by Oyo and related security steps announced by Ondo at various times.
He recalled that there was a report of bandits sending notices in English and Yoruba of their planned attack to some communities in Oriire LG shortly after the killing of five forest guards at Oloka village in January this year.
“In view of the fact that the primary duty of the government is the security and welfare of the people, governments in the south-western states of Nigeria must prove that they are alive to their constitutionally assigned responsibilities.
“Everything must be done to ensure that no area in the region experiences an attack by kidnappers and bandits anymore. Yorubaland has been infiltrated,” he said.
Afenifere then called on the six governors in the region to let the security of their people be their topmost priority.
He added that while the Federal Government has the onerous duty of ensuring the security and welfare of Nigerians, governors have the sacred responsibility of using the resources at their disposal to secure their people and guarantee their welfare.
Credit: punchng.com
