Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Chanting "Bring back our children" and "No more bandits," hundreds of primary and secondary school teachers in Oyo State marched peacefully through Ibadan on Friday, May 29, 2026, to demand the immediate rescue of 46 pupils, students and teachers who have now spent two weeks in captivity after a coordinated terrorist attack on three schools in Oriire Local Government Area. The protesters, operating under the aegis of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), converged at the busy Iwo Road axis in the state capital before marching towards the Oyo State Secretariat to present their grievances directly to the government. The demonstration, which disrupted traffic briefly, was the culmination of days of rising frustration over what teachers described as the government's failure to guarantee the safety of schoolchildren and educators.
The May 15 attack, one of the most brazen in the state's recent history, saw about 12 armed men on motorcycles, dressed in military camouflage, simultaneously storm Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota; Community Grammar School, Ahoro‑Esinele; and L.A. Primary School, Esiele. The assailants shot sporadically, killing an assistant headmaster, Mr. Joel Adesiyan, and a commercial motorcyclist, before herding pupils and teachers into the bush. A mathematics teacher, Mr. Michael Oyedokun, was later beheaded by his captors in a viral video that sparked national outrage. Community leaders put the number of abducted persons at 46, comprising 39 pupils and students and seven teachers, including the principal of Community High School, Mrs. Alamu Folawe. A two‑year‑old toddler, Christianah Akanbi, was also among the captives.
Speaking during the protest, one teacher, her voice trembling, told reporters: "We are here to cry out for help. Our children and colleagues are in captivity, and we cannot continue in silence while their lives are in danger." The demonstrators carried placards bearing inscriptions such as “Bring Back Our Children” and “No More Bandits,” and they chanted solidarity songs as they marched. The protest remained peaceful, with security personnel monitoring the situation to ensure law and order. The teachers urged security agencies to leave no stone unturned in ensuring the safe return of the abducted victims, stressing that the safety of schools must be guaranteed to restore confidence in the education sector.
The protest in Ibadan was part of a statewide action that also saw teachers converge in Ogbomoso, Iseyin and Oyo town, with participants gathering at designated locations by 8:00 a.m. The organisers, a coalition of civil society organisations, had called for the temporary closure of schools across Oyo State until the victims regain their freedom, insisting that learning cannot continue under an atmosphere of fear and insecurity. The NUT had earlier directed public school teachers in Oriire Local Government Area to embark on an indefinite strike, and the union's national president, Titus Amba, had threatened a nationwide shutdown of basic education if another attack occurs.
The teachers' demands have been echoed by political leaders. The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State blamed Governor Seyi Makinde for the surge in insecurity, accusing him of prioritising "political showmanship" over effective security management. President Bola Tinubu, in a statement, condemned the killing of the teacher as barbaric and assured that security operatives were working round the clock to rescue the victims and apprehend the perpetrators. The Inspector‑General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has been personally leading a technology‑driven operation, with the deployment of additional tactical assets and intelligence teams.
As the teachers dispersed from the Iwo Road axis, their chants still echoing in the air, the fate of the 46 abducted pupils and teachers remained unknown. The Oyo State Government has yet to announce a breakthrough in the rescue operation, and the families of the victims continue to wait in anguish. For the teachers who took to the streets, the protest was a desperate plea: that their colleagues and the schoolchildren be brought home alive, and that the classrooms of Oyo State never again become a hunting ground for bandits.
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