Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has issued a blistering ultimatum to the Federal Government, demanding decisive action to end the wave of school kidnappings sweeping across the nation, as the country marks one week since armed gangs abducted 46 pupils and teachers from three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, with victims still languishing in captivity. In a strongly worded statement issued on May 20, 2026, from Abuja, NLC President Comrade Joe Ajaero condemned what he described as the "chilling weakness" of Nigeria's security apparatus, which saw rescue efforts repelled by improvised explosive devices and the use of abducted children as human shields.
The labour movement declared that the era of mere condolences and endless assurances must end, warning that the state has lost the kinetic deterrence and extraction capabilities necessary to save lives in such circumstances. Comrade Ajaero noted with dismay that when armed gangs abducted an estimated 39 pupils and seven teachers from Community High School and L.A. Basic School, Ahoro Esinele, and First Baptist School (Nursery and Primary), Yawota, in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State about a week ago, the general reaction was a weary shrug. He said this reaction was certainly not out of callousness but a reflection of the extent of the loss of our humanity, and equally so, a quiet indignation and a reluctant acceptance of our new way of life.
The NLC president lamented that what makes Ahoro Esinele and Yawota unbearable is the profile of the victims, little children, and the brutality recorded during captivity, including the murder of a teacher. According to the statement, security forces and local vigilantes pursued the kidnappers immediately but were repelled by improvised explosive devices and the use of children as human shields. This exposes a chilling weakness: we have lost the kinetic deterrence and extraction capabilities necessary to save lives in these circumstances. Worse still, if the state cannot protect communities, citizens may increasingly turn to bandits for security, a catastrophic shift in loyalty and an implicit vote of no confidence in our institutions.
There is another grim truth, Comrade Ajaero added: nowhere is safe anymore. What were once distant stories of abduction have moved to rural schools and now threaten our towns and cities. It is only a matter of time before such atrocities become commonplace in urban daylight. The labour leader recalled that on May 1, 2026, at the Eagle Square in Abuja during the May Day celebration, the NLC and the Trade Union Congress had warned that they may be forced to advise their members to stay at home to avoid being kidnapped, abducted or killed. That warning, which many dismissed as political grandstanding, now reads like a prophecy unfolding in real time.
The attack on the Esiele community involved armed gunmen storming schools in the Ahoro-Esiele/Yawota axis of Oriire, Ogbomoso, abducting several students and seven teachers at the Community High School in Ahoro-Esiele, L.A. Primary School, Esiele, and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School. The assault left an assistant headmaster, identified as Joel Adesiyan, and a commercial motorcyclist dead. A video which circulated on Monday showed the bandits beheading Michael Oyedokun, one of the abducted teachers, in captivity after tying him to a tree. According to community leaders, a total of 46 persons – seven teachers and 39 students – were abducted from Community High School Ahoro-Esinele and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School. A two-year-old toddler, Christianah Akanbi of Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School, is among the captives. The police confirmed that seven students, 18 pupils and seven teachers remain missing as of May 19. Among the abducted teachers are the principal of Community High School, Mrs. Alamu Folawe; the vice principal, Mr. Ojo Jonathan; Mr. Olatunde Zacchaeus; Mr. John Olaleye; Mrs. Oladeji; and Mary Akanbi of Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School.
The Oyo State Police Command has since arrested six suspects believed to be informants who maintained telephone communication with the bandits during and after the operation. According to the police, the conversations allegedly contained details on how the criminals could successfully navigate routes within the Old Oyo National Park to hidden locations used as safe havens. Investigators uncovered that some of the suspects served as informants to the bandits responsible for the abduction and killings, providing them with intelligence on security deployments and escape routes. The breakthrough led to the arrest of the suspects during coordinated joint operations involving the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Police Force, the Western Nigeria Security Network codenamed Amotekun, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and Agro-Rangers.
President Bola Tinubu has condemned as barbaric the reported killing of Michael Oyedokun and assured that security operatives are working around the clock to rescue the victims. In a statement by his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, the President said he was saddened by the reported killing and sympathised with Governor Seyi Makinde, commending the steps he has taken on the matter. The President disclosed that the Inspector-General of Police, following his instructions, is personally leading a technology-driven operation involving the deployment of the Intelligence Response Team, adding that a breakthrough was expected soon. President Tinubu also renewed his call for the establishment of state police, stating that cases of kidnapping further make imperative the establishment of state police to man some of our underserved areas, and urged the National Assembly to accelerate the enactment of the law creating state police.
Governor Seyi Makinde has declared that his administration will not surrender to terror but is prepared to listen to the abductors' demands to secure the safe release of the victims. He disclosed that two newly acquired surveillance aircraft were being prepared to provide aerial intelligence over forests suspected to be hideouts of the abductors. The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, has visited the affected communities in Oriire Local Government Area, where he received detailed operational briefings and directed the deployment of additional tactical and intelligence assets to reinforce ongoing operations within the area and adjoining forests.
The NLC has called for a sincere and honest conversation and change of both strategies and tactics in the war against terror, a fundamental shift from the war as a business to one of survival. The labour movement outlined urgent demands, including conducting an immediate, well-resourced rescue operation with clear public updates, strengthening intelligence-sharing, bomb-response units, and rapid extraction teams, protecting schools with visible, trained security and community-backed protection measures, and ending the leak of ransom culture by refusing to negotiate publicly and prosecuting financiers who enable kidnappings. Enough blood has been shed. Address this security challenge now, before our nation's future is irreparably harmed.
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