The rescue of pupils and teachers kidnapped in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State has sparked mixed reactions from Nigerians, with many welcoming the development while demanding that authorities publicly present the suspected kidnappers and provide more details about the operation.
Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, announced the rescue on Friday in a post on X.
“Finally, all the kidnapped pupils and teachers in Oriire, Oyo have been rescued by our security agencies,” Onanuga wrote.
“One of the rescued teachers in Oyo sends a thank you message to President Tinubu and the security agencies.”
The announcement came after weeks of uncertainty following the abduction of pupils and teachers in the state.
In a video shared alongside the post, one of the rescued victims, Rachael Alamu, principal of Community High School, expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and the security agencies for securing their release.
“President sir, our father, we are grateful, we understand your commitment to our safety and we appreciate all you did for us…. And every security operatives, they tried so much and that is why we are still alive by now, God bless you,” she said.
While many celebrated the safe return of the victims, several Nigerians questioned the circumstances surrounding the rescue, calling on the government to release details of the operation and publicly parade those responsible for the kidnapping.
A user identified as @salees01 congratulated the rescued victims and their families but asked, “Congratulations to the families of the rescued pupils and their teachers. But where are the pictures of the porpurted terrorist arrested in the course of the rescue as claimed???”
Another user, @God_streasure7, demanded more transparency, writing: “Make dem give full account abeg We need to know what really happened.”
Similarly, @Saythetrut99188 expressed doubt over the official account of the rescue, saying: “Bunch of fools, where are the arrested kidnappers, you’re deceiving your father not me.”
For @LionelKuti, the government should disclose more information about the operation.
“Who is this one fooling? We will still hear from the teachers or the students what happened exactly but you will lie as usual. Name the terrorists and their sponsors, name the location the clash of rescue happened and let Nigerians verify,” the user wrote.
Another commenter, @REPRESENT042, called for visual evidence of the operation.
“We need videos and pictures if truly they are caught, it’s been long they start deceiving us with fake news about arrest or neutralising kidnappers,” the user said.
Echoing similar sentiments, @loverbird0 wrote: “We want to see d faces to the terrorists, don’t hide them in DSS custody if this is not a staged drama.”
Also reacting, @EdmundOnoriode urged authorities to ensure swift prosecution of the suspects.
“All the arrested should be publicly paraded and then prompt and swift justice melted with immediate effect,” the user wrote.
The federal government has yet to release additional details on the rescue operation, including the number of suspects arrested or the circumstances that led to the victims’ freedom.
