Four days into the abduction of teachers, pupils and students from Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School and L.A. Primary School from the Esiele community in Oyo State, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reacted, condemning as barbaric the reported beheading of one of the abducted teachers.
The teachers, pupils and students had been abducted from the Esiele community last Friday by bandits who invaded the schools in the morning.
However, one of the kidnapped teachers, Michael Oyedokun, was beheaded in a new video allegedly released by bandits on Sunday. The video shows the teacher was gruesomely killed after being tied and forced to speak. Already, the viral inhumane video has raised fresh concerns over the safety of the remaining victims.
In a statement by Presidential Spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu assured that “security operatives are working around the clock to rescue the victims and apprehend the bandits and their collaborators within the community.”
The statement noted that President Tinubu sympathised with Governor Seyi Makinde, the government, and the people of Oyo State for the unfortunate incident and assured them that the federal government will collaborate with the state government to rescue the victims.
Onanuga quoted the President as saying: “I am saddened by the reported killing of one of the teachers kidnapped by the gunmen who invaded the community. I sympathise with Governor Seyi Makinde and commend the steps he has taken on the matter. I sympathise with the families of the kidnapped victims.
“The Federal Government is working with the Oyo State government to rescue all the victims. I commend the Inspector-General of Police and the Commissioners of Police in Oyo and Kwara States for their quick intervention and the deployment of a tactical and the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) team to rescue the victims.
“The IGP, following my instructions, is personally leading the tech-driven operation. We expect a breakthrough soon. The bandits and all their local collaborators will be fished out and made to face the full wrath of the law.
“Cases of kidnapping further make imperative the establishment of state police to man some of our underserved areas. The National Assembly should accelerate the enactment of the law creating state police.”
