At least 45 pupils were abducted on Friday when armed men stormed three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.

The attackers targeted Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota; Community Grammar School, Esiele; and L.A. Primary School. Witnesses said panic spread quickly across the villages.

Elizabeth Olagoke, a teacher at Baptist Nursery and Primary School, recounted: “The terrorists came around 8am. We had all started the morning session. They came on six motorcycles, and there were two passengers on each bike.”

She added: “They were all masked and dressed in camouflage, and they were young men. They operated for about seven minutes.”

Olagoke said the attackers abducted children from Yawota, Esiele, and Alausa, and also kidnapped a teacher. “In all, they abducted about 48 persons,” she explained.

Parents In Anguish

The Eleshi Ele of Esiele, Oba Tajudeen Abioye, confirmed 45 pupils were taken. Former lawmaker Bamigboye Abidoye said 36 pupils were abducted from Baptist Nursery and Primary School alone.

Parents described the ordeal as devastating. Ajarah Ayanwale said: “We saw the kidnappers in army uniforms in the morning. We thought they were in the community to protect us.”

She added: “It was when we returned home expecting our children that we realised they had been kidnapped. The government should please help us rescue our children.”

Another mother, Shukurat Pius, said her five-year-old son Stephen was among those taken. “They were put on motorcycles, and the rest of the children were marched into the forest on foot. I want my child alive.”

For Nafisat Agunle, the pain was unbearable. “We were at home when we started hearing gunshots around 8am to 9am. Later, we heard gunmen had attacked the primary school,” she said.

Adijat Ibrahim, whose nine-year-old son Muhammed was abducted, added: “I keep feeling like my son will walk into the house. I love my son. The government should please help rescue the schoolchildren.”

Security Response And Arrests

Security agencies said three suspects were arrested in Esiele and transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department.

A senior operative assured: “Investigation is ongoing, and the public is assured that the schoolchildren and the principal will be rescued unhurt.”

The Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, explained that security forces had confined the suspects within the National Park axis.

He said: “This has made the rescue operation more difficult. What we are trying to do now is locate their position and apply pressure.”

Oyelade revealed that Amotekun operatives and hunters from seven local government areas were deployed to patrol Igbeti, Oloka, and adjoining communities.

He added that the Amotekun Corps operates 181 vehicles, 450 motorcycles, and over 2,500 personnel to strengthen surveillance and rapid response across the state.

Regional Alarm Over Terror Infiltration

The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, warned that terrorists had infiltrated South-West states. He said: “We have not seen anything yet. The terrorists are just testing the waters for now.”

Adams explained that local security groups such as the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) lacked approval to bear arms. “There is nothing we can do without state police or government approval,” he said.

He added: “Unless we have state police or allow the relevant security groups to partner with governors at the local government level to operate, the problem of insecurity will persist.”

Adams warned that attacks in Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti, and Oyo were only preliminary moves by terrorist groups testing security responses.

South-West States Step Up Measures

Governments across the South-West have intensified surveillance. In Ondo, Amotekun Commander Akogun Adetunji Adeleye said: “We have intensified our patrols along the border communities. We have now made the patrol a 24-hour operation.”

In Osun, Special Adviser Samuel Ojo said: “We are working to ensure that such a thing will not happen in our state.”

Ogun’s Special Adviser Kayode Akinmade explained: “We are very proactive in Ogun State, and we have put several security measures in place to ensure that our people can sleep with their two eyes closed.”

In Ekiti, Commissioner Taiwo Olatunbosun said: “We are running a Safe School Project programme where almost all the schools in the state are well-fenced, and we deploy technology to ensure real-time information.”

Lagos Governor’s aide Gboyega Akosile assured residents: “Lagosians do not have anything to be afraid of. Lagos is secured.”

The attack reflects a growing trend of mass kidnappings in Nigeria, often used by armed groups to extort money or pressure authorities.

Oriire’s proximity to the Old Oyo National Park and forest reserves has made it vulnerable to infiltration. Security experts warn that insurgents exploit weak state control in rural areas.

The DAWN Commission Director General, Seye Oyeleye, said: “A lot of things are going on underground to try and rescue these children and also ensure that things like this don’t happen again.”