Oyo Police Reject Claims of Rescued Abducted Schoolchildren and Teachers

The Oyo State Police Command has denied claims on social media that the schoolchildren and teachers kidnapped from Ahoro-Esiele and Yawota communities in Oyo State have been rescued.

When PREMIUM TIMES reached out to the police on Thursday, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Olayinka Ayanlade, called the claims false.

“It is unfounded, it is untrue, and it is false,” Mr Ayanlade stated.

The claims spread quickly through a now-deleted Facebook post by Tope Fasua, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Economic Affairs. The post said that all abducted students and teachers had been freed in a joint security operation that involved the military, police, and forest rangers.

“In a major victory for security forces and a huge relief for families across Nigeria, all 42 students and 7 teachers abducted from schools in Oyo State’s Oriire Local Government Area on May 15 have been safely rescued in a daring joint operation early this morning,” part of the post claimed.

The post also said that the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), which had started a strike on June 1, had called off the strike after the supposed rescue of the victims.

But in a statement, Mr Ayanlade said that while efforts to rescue the victims are ongoing, there has been no successful rescue. He urged the public to ignore the false report.

“Security operatives are working tirelessly, deploying all available human and operational resources to ensure the safe rescue of the abducted pupils and teachers, their unharmed reunification with their families, and the apprehension and prosecution of all those responsible for the heinous act,” the statement said.

Mr Ayanlade did not share more details but insisted that the claim of a successful rescue operation was incorrect.

The kidnapping happened on May 15 when armed men attacked schools in Oriire Local Government Area, close to Ogbomoso, and took about 39 pupils and 7 teachers.

This incident caused a lot of anger across Oyo State and raised fresh worries about the safety of schools and learning spaces. As of Wednesday, the victims had spent about 19 days in captivity, with families, education stakeholders, and residents waiting anxiously for their safe return.