Principal Recounts How Abductors Executed Colleagues to Pressure Government

​IBADAN – The harrowing ordeal of 46 pupils and teachers abducted from schools in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State has come to a somber conclusion, with the school principal revealing that their captors deliberately executed two staff members to coerce the government into meeting their demands.

​Mrs. Rachael Folawe Alamu, the Principal of Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, recounted the terrifying 56-day captivity during the official handover of the rescued victims to Governor Seyi Makinde by the Nigerian Army on Monday.

​The victims were abducted on May 15, 2026, when armed bandits simultaneously attacked Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota, and L.A. Primary School, Ahoro-Esiele. The initial attack also claimed the lives of an assistant headmaster, Mr. Joel Adesiyan, and a commercial motorcyclist.

​A Campaign of Psychological Torture

Mrs. Alamu detailed a systematic campaign of fear, where the kidnappers held the victims in the dense forests surrounding the Old Oyo National Park. She revealed that the abductors frequently subjected the captives to psychological warfare, constantly asserting that they had been abandoned by the state and federal authorities.

​“They used fear to subdue us. At one point, they told us the government wasn’t interested in our case anymore because they didn’t value us,” Mrs. Alamu said.

​The situation turned deadly when the abductors escalated their tactics. According to the principal, the kidnappers executed two hostages—a teacher named Mr. Michael on the second day of the abduction, and another colleague, identified as a deacon, on the first Sunday in June—purposely to force the government’s hand.

​The Long Road to Rescue

The victims, who endured harsh conditions under the sun and rain for nearly two months, only discovered upon their release that their plight had become a national concern. Their rescue followed a high-stakes, coordinated military operation.

​Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga confirmed that the rescue mission resulted in the neutralisation of several kidnappers, while eight suspects were apprehended and are currently in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS). Significantly, the government maintained that no ransom was paid and no prisoner exchange occurred to secure the freedom of the remaining captives.

​Scars of Captivity

While the return of the pupils and teachers has sparked relief and jubilation across the state, the trauma of the experience remains palpable. “We have scars already, but we believe with time we will heal,” Mrs. Alamu remarked.

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​The principal expressed profound gratitude to President Bola Tinubu, Governor Makinde, and the security agencies for their efforts, as well as to the millions of Nigerians who offered prayers for their safe return.

​The state government had previously shuttered schools across four local government areas to facilitate the intensive, intelligence-driven rescue operations that ultimately broke the criminals’ hold on the victims. As the survivors begin their journey toward recovery, the incident remains a stark reminder of the security challenges facing basic education institutions in rural Nigeria.