Makinde: “Oyo Is Not Chibok” — Gov Vows Rescue of Abducted Oriire Pupils, Demolishes Arms Depot

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has vowed that pupils and teachers abducted in Oriire LGA will be rescued safely, declaring “Oyo State is not Chibok and will never be Chibok

The governor spoke Thursday at his Ikolaba residence in Ibadan while addressing protesters led by activist Martins Vincent Otse, aka VeryDarkMan. The protest followed a series of kidnappings, including the abduction of over 45 nursery and primary school pupils and their teachers more than a month ago. One teacher has reportedly been killed and a Nigerian Army lieutenant died days ago during operations.

Makinde struck an emotional tone, saying he was willing to sacrifice himself to secure the children’s release. “If you ask me, can I sacrifice myself for those children to come out? I will do it. I have lived a good life, I’m almost 60 and it doesn’t matter. Our children will never be in the same situation as the Chibok children,” he said.

He acknowledged the risks of the rescue, noting one teacher had already been lost. “If we can avoid losing more, we will avoid losing more, but if we get to the point that certain people have to be sacrificed, including myself, we will do it,” he added.

The governor explained constitutional limits on state control of security agencies: “As governor, I can call the Commissioner of Police and we can meet, but I cannot deploy him. If I say go to a particular place, he will need approval from the Inspector-General of Police. The same thing applies to the military.”

Makinde said the victims were still alive based on available intelligence, but details of the operation could not be shared publicly due to the victims’ ages. “This is the first time anywhere in Nigeria that people have kidnapped nursery and primary school children. These are children who cannot even run or do anything for themselves. So the operation to rescue them is a special type of operation if we do not want to lose any of those children,” he said.

He confirmed the government was in talks with the abductors despite sovereignty concerns. “If government starts negotiating with bandits, it means we are surrendering sovereignty to the bandits, but in this special situation, if we want those children alive, we have to bend backwards,” he stated. He assured that lessons would be learnt to prevent a recurrence once the children are freed.

VeryDarkMan said the protest was to demand clarity on the rescue plan and timeline. He offered himself and other volunteers to join security operatives in the bush. “As of now, we do not even know the condition of the children… Over 45 of them were taken into the bush with their teachers, and one of the teachers has been beheaded. We want to tell the governor, what is the plan and when are we going to see the children?” he said.

In a related development, the Oyo government demolished a building in Ibadan allegedly used as an arms and ammunition depot by criminal elements. Commissioner for Public Works Abdulmojeed Mogbonjubola said the action followed police investigations linking the property to storage of sophisticated weapons.

Meanwhile, worried by school attacks nationwide, the Ondo State government inaugurated a 17-member Safe Schools steering committee. Headed by Commissioner for Education Prof

Igbekele Ajibefun, the committee includes the Army, Police, NSCDC, Amotekun, traditional rulers and PTA. It recommended CCTV cameras, especially in remote and border schools, and urged collective vigilance.