The families of the abducted schoolchildren and their teachers in Oyo and Borno have waited over 50 days for their relatives to be released with no firm sign of any resolution in security agencies’ rescue efforts.
The coordinated attacks took place on 15th May 2026 when armed men raided the three schools in the Oriire LGA of Oyo State, kidnapping 39 pupils and seven teachers as victims. Similarly at another secondary school, Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in Askira/uba Local Government Area of Borno State, suspected insurgents invaded 42 teachers/students to their toilet block on the same day.
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The families have since been living in uncertainty and constantly asked the Federal Government for increased efforts to free them.
On the extended period of captivity, the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd), said security forces are deliberately shying away from taking a action, because intelligence suggests that those taken have “been used as a human shield” by the captors.
He said the military has been conducting research and planning carefully to not put the lives of the abducted children and teachers in danger and added rescue efforts were still underway.
Ojo’s abduction has kept the eyes of the nation on itself, while the parents of the Borno kidnapped victims have complained about the lack of adequate information from the authorities on the fate of their children.
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Others reported staying in the dark, with authorities providing no meaningful news for their families and only getting in touch via rumor mongers endowing them with hope for better.
Long tenure in captivity has added to pressure of the government from education stakeholders. Moreso, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) had already warned that the failure to secure the release of the abducted teachers and constant attacks on educational institutions can dampen confidence in the safety and security of education in the communities of conflict, while civil society organisations have been reiterating the need to strengthen the protection of educational facilities in conflict stricken communities.
The twin abductions again underscore the continuing problem of security in schools in parts of Nigeria despite many promises from the Nigerian government that schools would be better guarded.
But, as security analysts put it, there is need for continuous, sound intelligence gathering; community cooperation and enhanced surveillance around vulnerable schools to help prevent such violence.
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Authorities have said that all the abductees are still being worked on, adding that it created “all opportunities” to ensure their safe return home without putting them at more risk in the military operation.
