The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has decried blame sharing among tiers of government following the abduction of 47 students and teachers from three schools in the Oriire Local Government Area of the state.
Makinde spoke on Tuesday while addressing protesting labour unions and student groups at the State Secretariat in Ibadan over the continued captivity of the abductees, 18 days after the incident.
The protesters included members of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) and National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), who stormed the secretariat with placards and banners.
The Governor had earlier held a meeting behind closed doors with the joint leadership of the protesters before going to address the larger members who were there in their hundreds.
“This is a time of national distress. It is not the time to trade blame. It is not the time to play politics. I am personally distressed. This is not the time for us to say it is the President that should have handled this, or it is the Governor, or the local government. This is a time to pull together as one.
“My own father was a primary school teacher. He actually taught at Awole Dada, less than 15 kilometres away from where this incident happened. My father was there in 1959 and 1960. If something like this had happened to him, maybe I wouldn’t even have been born.” He stated.
Describing the abductors as individuals devoid of humanity, Makinde appealed to the teachers, workers, students, and residents to maintain confidence in government and security agencies, saying extensive operations have been ongoing since the incident.
He explaines saying: “I have heard from the Federal Government. Security operatives have been here for the past two weeks. They spent their salaries here. I have been meeting with them morning and night, sometimes three or four times a day.
“We shouldn’t provide oxygen to the people that want to see us divided. The response at this time should be to pull together and allow the government to see this through. I can give you the assurance that our children and their teachers, by the grace of God, will return safely.”
Makinde, who further stressed that insecurity threatens every aspect of development and governance, invited stakeholders to contribute ideas towards strengthening the state’s long-term security framework, saying the state will listen and act as appropriate.
Earlier, in his remarks, the Oyo State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Kayode Martins, warned that insecurity has become a nationwide threat transcending any profession or social class.
Martins said: “Beyond being a worker, I want to talk as a citizen of this country. Teachers and pupils were kidnapped. Don’t let that give you the thought that teachers and pupils are the targets. Every Nigerian today is a target.”
He reminded the government that the protection of citizens remains its primary obligation, while assuring that labour will support all efforts aimed at rescuing the victims.
For his part, the Oyo State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, Fatai Hassan, said teachers across the state were living in fear following the attack, urging the state government to intensify efforts towards securing the release of the victims.
Hassan demanded a stronger security architecture around educational institutions in such a way that schools will be safe for teaching and learning to properly take place.
Declaring the union’s position, he stated: “Out of fear, we want to inform you, sir, that our members will stay out of classes pending the release of our people.”
Leading the students’ delegation, President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Babatunde Akinteye, said students across the country have mobilised in solidarity with the abducted pupils and teachers.
Akinteye, who described the abductors as “enemies of the nation”, called for collective action to defeat terrorism and criminality, explaining that NANS deliberately chose advocacy over disruptive demonstrations to avoid undermining ongoing rescue operations.
He pledged support for all measures aimed at securing the victims’ freedom, noting: “We are standing by every movement, every decision, and every process that will bring back our students and the teachers that were kidnapped.”
