By Marvellous Nyang
March 29, 2026
Anger and growing public outrage exploded across Oyo State on Friday as teachers, civil society groups and education advocates flooded the streets of Ibadan demanding the immediate rescue of teachers and pupils abducted by gunmen in Oriire Local Government Area almost two weeks ago.
The peaceful but emotionally charged protest exposed rising frustration over what demonstrators described as the prolonged captivity of innocent schoolchildren and educators while families remain trapped in agony and uncertainty.
The protesters, operating under the Oyo State Teachers Action Group alongside the Nigeria Teachers Congress, converged at Iwo Road in Ibadan before marching through Agodi Gate toward the Oyo State Secretariat with placards bearing messages such as “Release our children now,” “Teachers’ lives matter,” “No more kidnapping” and “Education cannot thrive in fear.”
The demonstration followed the shocking May 15 invasion of schools in the Esiele, Ahoro and Yawota communities of Ogbomoso, where heavily armed gunmen stormed classrooms, killed at least one teacher and abducted dozens of teachers and pupils into nearby forests.
Investigations and official accounts indicate that the attackers invaded Community High School, L.A. Primary School and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School during school hours, throwing entire communities into panic.
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Governor Seyi Makinde later confirmed that seven teachers, multiple secondary school students and 18 primary school pupils were abducted during the coordinated attacks, although community sources insisted the total number of victims reached 46.
The atmosphere surrounding the crisis became even more disturbing after videos emerged from captivity showing traumatised teachers and pupils pleading for help.
One of the emotional videos featured the abducted principal of Community High School, Mrs Folawe Alamu, begging President Bola Tinubu, Governor Makinde and Nigerians to rescue them before more lives were lost.
Another abducted teacher reportedly appeared clutching a baby while pleading with authorities not to abandon the victims inside the forests where terrified children were said to be crying uncontrollably.
Earlier reports also confirmed that one of the abducted teachers, identified as Michael Oyedokun, was allegedly murdered by the kidnappers.
Friday’s Ibadan protest was not the first eruption of anger over the abductions.
Days earlier, teachers in Ogbomoso shut down academic activities and marched through the town to protest the kidnapping and killing of their colleagues.
Protesters gathered around Takie Roundabout carrying placards with inscriptions including “Slain for the crime of teaching,” “The classroom will be empty without teachers” and “Protect us now.”
Videos from the demonstrations showed teachers chanting solidarity songs and openly expressing fears that schools across Oyo had become unsafe.
Addressing protesters in Ibadan on Friday, leaders of the Nigeria Teachers Congress warned that the government could no longer afford to treat the safety of teachers and schoolchildren lightly.
The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, also announced plans for a wider solidarity protest scheduled for Monday, saying silence over the continued captivity of teachers and pupils would amount to complicity.
Civil society organisations in the state equally intensified pressure on authorities, with some groups demanding a temporary shutdown of schools until adequate security measures are put in place.
Security experts say the incident has shattered the long held belief that the South West was relatively insulated from the mass school kidnappings that devastated parts of Northern Nigeria for years.
The attack has also raised serious questions about intelligence failures, weak rural security coverage and the growing boldness of armed groups operating around forest corridors linking Oyo and neighbouring states.
President Bola Tinubu condemned the killing of the abducted teacher as “barbaric” and assured Nigerians that security agencies were working with the Oyo State Government to rescue the victims and apprehend those responsible.
Governor Makinde also vowed not to surrender to terror, disclosing that tactical operations remained ongoing while urging residents to support security agencies with timely intelligence.
Yet, despite repeated government assurances, public anxiety continues to deepen as families of the abducted teachers and pupils wait helplessly for news of their loved ones.
For many protesters on Friday, the message was blunt and urgent, Nigeria’s classrooms are turning into hunting grounds, and citizens can no longer remain silent while teachers and children disappear into forests without consequences.
