Following last week’s abduction of pupils, students, and teachers from Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yaworan, Community Grammar School, Esiele; and L. A. Primary School in Oriire Local Government Area in Oyo State, the Yoruba Council of Elders, YCE, on Thursday, challenged South West governors, leaders and stakeholders not to allow the region become the next frontier of mass abduction.

The YCE, in a statement by its Secretary General, Chief Oladipo Oyewole, while condemning the abduction said it is not just a crime against Oyo State, it is an assault on Nigeria and future of the Southwest.

Oyewole also warned that children all over Yorubaland should not be used as collateral damage.

The statement reads: “The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE), a pan Yoruba sociocultural organisation condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the coordinated abduction of over 45 pupils, students, and teachers from Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yaworan, Community Grammar School, Esiele; and L. A. Primary School in Oriire Local Government Area, Oyo State, on Friday, 15th May, 2026.

“This attack on innocent children and their teachers is not just a crime against Oyo State, it is an assault on the conscience of Nigeria, on the future of the Southwest, and on the sacred right of every child to learn in safety.

“Schools must never become hunting grounds for kidnappers and bandits. In the face of this ugly occurrence, we call on the Federal Government of Nigeria, to immediately deploy special forces, intelligence assets, and logistics (support) to ensure the safe and unconditional release of all abducted victims.

“The Governors of the Southwest States – Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Ekiti and Lagos – should rise above partisan boundaries and deplore all available strategic resources, and inter-state cooperation to secure lives and properties. Without gainsaying, Yorubaland cannot afford to become the next frontier of mass abduction.

“The Oyo incident is a symptom of a deeper national crisis. It is in view of this that we call for the strengthening of community and regional security architecture all across Yorubaland.

“Government in the Southwest should immediately provide necessary and required materials for the Amọtẹkun, give them more Training, better equipments, and legal backing for intelligence led operation. It is necessary at this crucial period for the six governors in the Southwest to recognize the statutory roles of the office of Aare Ona-Kakanfo of Yorubaland along with a combination of Chief Adeniyi Adeyemo (Sunday Igbiho), and their immense contributions in promoting peace in Yorubaland.

“The six Southwest Governors should therefore engage them along with similar Indigenous security groups and other well meaning persons and organisations in the Southwest , to spread their dragnet in the protection of our Territories.

“We further call on the Governor Oyo State to quickly establish a joint security task force for real-time intelligence sharing across the six states to prevent cross-boarder movement of criminals.

“There should be the deployment of Armed School Protection Units in high risk Local Government Areas especially those areas bordering forest spaces. Our children all over Yorubaland are not to be used as collateral damage. Every day we delay this decisive action, we may lose another child’s future and another parent’s peace of mind.

“We stand with the families of the abducted students and sympathize with the family of the Mathematics teacher who was gruesomely murdered by bandits. We pray that the Almighty God shall grant all directly concerned strength and fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.” (Vanguard)

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