The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Olatunji Disu, has explained why pupils and teachers abducted in Oyo State remained in captivity for 56 days before they were rescued, saying security agencies delayed taking certain actions to avoid putting the victims at risk.
Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday, Disu said the operation was carried out with caution despite public criticism over the pace of the rescue. According to him, security agencies kept their plans secret to prevent the abductors from harming the victims.
The pupils and teachers were abducted in May 2026 when suspected terrorists attacked two schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State and took dozens of victims into captivity.
They were later rescued after spending 56 days in captivity following a coordinated operation by security agencies.
Sharing details of the incident, the IGP said the attackers used the vehicle of one of the teachers to escape before setting it on fire at the entrance to the forest.
“I will share with you the incident of the Ogbomosho kidnap. That day, they came. Two schools they went to and kidnapped those children and their teachers.
“They used the vehicle of one of the teachers, the head teacher. When they got to the entrance of the bush that they were going to, they set fire to the vehicle. We didn’t know why they did it,” he said.
Disu said the location of the attack made the rescue operation more difficult because there was no communication network and security formations were far from the affected communities.
“In that area, there is no network at all, at all. And I think even police station far, far, far, far from them. But they had only one street, one road that goes to the two villages where this kidnap happened,” Disu said.
He said police officers, soldiers and vigilantes immediately began tracking the abductors, adding that one officer was killed during the operation.
“Policemen came, soldiers came, vigilante came. I’m talking to you now because it’s only us who are here. They followed them, the path. Somebody was shot as we were following them.
“Nobody mentioned that. Nobody saw it. Nobody saw the effort we put in,” he said.
The IGP said the police and the Nigerian Air Force deployed helicopters while security teams searched for the victims day and night.
“From that moment, the Nigerian Air Force helicopter, the police helicopter, everybody were there searching day and night,” he said.
Disu said security agencies deliberately avoided giving regular updates because they did not want to expose the children to danger or jeopardise the operation.
“Everybody were attacking us, left and right, with gun security. What is this? What is that? We cannot come out and talk. We cannot expose those children,” he said.
“There’s something they call collateral damage. People are forcing us. People are comparing us to other countries in the world. They wanted us to take hasty decisions.”
According to him, security officials held several late-night meetings to decide the best way to rescue the victims while managing public pressure.
“So now, every night, your husband came out at that time and told you he was going to meet him. It is true. We were holding meetings late in the night about it, trying to take decisions,” Disu said.
He added that even many security personnel were not fully briefed about the operation to ensure it remained confidential.
“Most of this, we did not come back and even tell a lot of our colleagues because we wanted to keep it secret. Parties we could not attend. A lot of things happened, we could not talk about it,” he said.
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