Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has assured residents that the schoolchildren and teachers abducted from Oriire Local Government Area will be rescued, declaring that he is personally distressed by the abduction and is committed to bringing them home safely, even as security agencies intensify operations to locate the victims within the dense expanse of the Old Oyo National Park.
Makinde gave the assurance on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, while addressing social media influencer Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, and a crowd of protesters who had gathered at the Oyo State Government House in Ibadan to demand urgent action. The demonstration came exactly one month and one day after armed bandits attacked three schools in the Oriire Local Government Area—Baptist Nursery and Primary School in Yawota, Community Grammar School, and L.A. Primary School in Ahoro-Esinle—on May 15, 2026, killing a teacher and abducting dozens of pupils and staff.
Speaking to the protesters, Makinde expressed deep personal anguish over the plight of the victims, emphasising the unprecedented nature of the crime. “I am also distressed because I have children of my own. I’m also distressed with what has happened to our children. It has been one month, just one month and one day already,” the governor said.
He described the abduction as extraordinary, noting that nursery and primary school children—some too young to run or defend themselves—had been targeted in a manner never before seen in Nigeria. “This is the first time anywhere in Nigeria that they have abducted nursery and primary school children. These are children that cannot even run or do anything for themselves. So, the operation to rescue them is a special type of operation,” Makinde stated.
The governor acknowledged that the government was in communication with the abductors, describing it as an exceptional measure necessitated by the circumstances. “If governments are negotiating with bandits, it means portraying great sovereignty to the bandits. In this special situation, for those children alive, we have to bear the burden,” he said. He stressed that while he could not divulge operational details due to the sensitive nature of the security situation, he remained confident that the rescue mission would succeed.
Makinde assured residents that every effort was being made to avoid casualties during the rescue. “I don’t want to lose any of those children. I give you the assurance that I, as the governor, by God’s grace, will bring out those children,” he declared. He also pledged that once the victims were freed, measures would be put in place to ensure such an incident never recurs.
The governor’s remarks came a day after he received the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the South-West, Olatoye Fayoade, at his office in Ibadan, where he appealed for deeper collaboration between the state government and the Nigeria Police Force in the ongoing rescue efforts. Makinde had described the abduction as one of the most traumatic incidents to confront the state in recent times, while emphasising that the government remained committed to working with federal security agencies until all the victims regained their freedom.
Security agencies have confirmed that the victims remain within the wider Old Oyo National Park axis, a vast 2,500-square-kilometre terrain that has complicated rescue operations. The difficult terrain, dense vegetation and scattered hideouts within the park continue to pose significant operational challenges, but Makinde assured residents that multiple security formations were working in coordination within and around the forest reserve, with intelligence-driven operations ongoing to locate and close in on the abductors.
“We will get them home safely,” the governor reaffirmed, expressing confidence in the ongoing rescue mission.
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