The Kwara State Government, on Wednesday, directed the closure of schools across four Local government areas amid escalating insecurity in the affected communities.

The government?s decision was disclosed by the Nigeria Union of Teachers, Kwara State Wing, on Wednesday.

In a circular issued on Wednesday and obtained by The PUNCH, the NUT Chairman, Yusuf Agboola, announced the shutdown of schools in Isin, Irepodun, Ifelodun, and Ekiti LGAs.

Agboola explained that the union was acting strictly on instructions from the Ministry of Education and Human Capital Development after the government raised concerns over fresh security threats in Kwara South.

?Comrade chairmen, this is to inform you and through you, all schools in the above local governments of the instruction to close down all schools with immediate effect until further notice,? the circular read.

?This decision was occasioned by the security challenges ravaging the area and the efforts of the government to control the situation. Treat this information as important and with the urgency it deserves, as it emanated from the ministry.?

He assured school heads and teachers that further directives would be communicated as the situation evolves.

On Wednesday, Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, also announced plans to seek the establishment of a Forward Operating Base of the Nigerian Army and a Mobile Police Squadron in Eruku, Ekiti Local Government Area, following Tuesday night?s deadly bandit attack on a church in the community, which left three worshippers dead and over 35 abducted.

The governor, who visited Eruku for an on-the-spot assessment, disclosed that he had spoken with the General Officer Commanding, 2 Division, and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, on the urgent security upgrade needed in the crisis-hit area.

?We will speak with the GOC to see that we have a Forward Operating Base in Eruku to enhance security here and also talk to the Inspector General of Police about establishing a mobile squadron here,? Abdulrazaq said.

?It is indeed unfortunate what happened yesterday despite all the effort we have been making. Our main purpose here is to commiserate with the people of the community. All the security agencies are on this. The President had to cancel his trip to the G-20 because of this incident and that of Kebbi State. So, the President is aware and we are on top of the situation,? he added.

Community recounts ordeal

For many residents, the governor?s visit came after a harrowing night of fear, bloodshed, and unanswered pleas for help.

One of the victims, Adesuyi Joshua, whose wife and granddaughter were among those abducted, recounted the horror.

?They took my wife and our granddaughter, who were in the church, along with about 30 other people. At first, we thought the gunshots were knockouts, but the sound changed. By the time we mobilised ourselves to confront the attackers, it was too late,? he said.

He accused security agents, especially the police, of worsening the situation instead of assisting the community.

?We have soldiers around this place. We also have a police station, but nothing was done throughout the attack.

?When we were pursuing the bandits, the police started shooting from their gate. We thought it was the bandits again. When we got to the station, they tear-gassed us and allowed the attackers to escape,? he alleged.

Another youth leader, Shola Peters, also accused the police of failing the community despite benefitting from local support.

?These are the same police officers the town supported. We built houses for the DPO and the men. When we needed them most, they failed us.

?Instead of joining us to pursue the bandits, they stopped us. The Inspector General needs to probe the Eruku division. All they do here is harass young boys and tag them as Yahoo boys or cultists.

?We need the Commissioner of Police and the Inspector General to come and probe the police. We don?t want them again. Let the government give us guns; we can protect ourselves.?

He added that despite having only ?a Dane gun and one pump-action,? the youths confronted the armed attackers.

?Their firepower was too much. They came with AK-49 rifles and machine guns.?

Speaking earlier with The PUNCH, the President Pastor of the attacked church, Pastor Lawrence Abiodun Bamidele, said the congregation was holding a thanksgiving service for 18 kidnapped residents freed last week when the bandits struck.

?We are doing Thanksgiving service for the 18 people who were kidnapped three weeks ago, and all of them were rescued. We were thanking God for their safe return, not knowing that danger was lurking around.

?The incident happened unexpectedly and so fast. They came in and surrounded the church, shooting sporadically. Some who ran outside were shot from a tree, which one of the bandits climbed.

?In the pandemonium, three people died on the spot, and about 35 church members were kidnapped. We need government assistance. This attack is the first of its kind in Kwara State in a church.?

The Ekiti LGA Christian Association of Nigeria Coordinator, Pastor Kenneth Adigoke, expressed deep concern, warning that the attack could be interpreted as an assault on the Christian community.

?This attack is just like a direct assault on the Christian community and the body of Christ.

?Look at the situation that happened yesterday, they entered the church and killed three people on the spot, and kidnapped about 35. If they said there is genocide against the church or the Christian community, it can be justified.

?People are not happy. We want the government to handle this insecurity issue dispassionately, and we believe that with prayers, the issue will be tackled.?

Protesters block the highway.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of angry youths barricaded the Ilorin?Kabba Expressway to protest what they described as ?total abandonment? by security agencies during the attack.

When The PUNCH visited around 1:30 pm, bonfires, stones, and logs blocked the highway, leaving dozens of trailers and commercial vehicles stranded.

Residents insisted the attack lasted almost an hour without any intervention from security operatives reportedly stationed nearby.

A vigilante, who pleaded anonymity for personal safety, suggested foul play, citing similarities with previous incidents in Kwara.

?It was on Sunday that they took the forest guards and some of our men for training, and two days later the bandits attacked. This is similar to what happened in Oke Ode when rifles were collected from vigilantes before an attack.

?The government must probe this. It doesn?t look like a coincidence.?

The Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, who visited the community alongside the Kwara State Director of the Department of State Services, assured residents of swift action.

?We will bring the perpetrators to justice. We are deploying more men and resources to secure this area,? he said, adding that an Armoured Personnel Carrier would be stationed permanently in Eruku.

The Owa of Eruku, Oba Busari Arinde Oyediran Olanrewaju, told Governor Abdulrazaq that the community had been living under repeated attacks for months.

?Since the beginning of this year, we have been facing this issue. Our farmers have run away, both indigenes and non-indigenes. The bandits have been disturbing us for a long time, but most of it does not get to the outside world.

?All teachers in the community have run away, and two of those who stayed were among those kidnapped yesterday.

?We always contribute money to free people kidnapped on their farms, on the road, or even in their houses.

?Our road is also bad and contributes to insecurity. If there is an attack, before help can come, the bandits would have escaped because the road is not motorable.?

The Eruku attack adds to a worsening trend of violent incidents across Kwara?s border areas with Kogi and Ekiti states ? zones increasingly infiltrated by bandits fleeing military pressure in neighbouring forests.

Security experts have repeatedly warned that Kwara?s porous borders, poor road networks, and sparse security presence make rural communities easy targets.

Residents say that unless decisive action is taken, bandits displaced from Babanla, Baba Sango, and other forest corridors will continue regrouping around Eruku and nearby towns.

Governor Abdulrazaq?s push for an Army base and Mobile Police Squadron signals the government?s first major step towards establishing a permanent military presence in the troubled axis. (The PUNCH)

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