By: Tunji Okunlola
Mounting concern over Nigeria’s deteriorating security situation intensified this week after coordinated attacks on schools in Oyo and Borno states left dozens of children abducted, prompting condemnation from political leaders, traditional rulers, rights organisations and retired security officials.
The apex Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has urged South-West governors to take urgent action against worsening insecurity in the region, following Friday’s attacks on three schools in the Oriire Local Council of Oyo State. Gunmen on motorbikes stormed the Baptist Nursery and Primary School in Yawota, Community Grammar School in Ahoro-Esinle, and an L.A. Primary School in the same council on 15 May, also raiding the communities of Ahoro-Esinle, Alawusa, Yawota and Oniya.
In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, Afenifere extended sympathy to the families of victims and those injured, and noted that its leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, received the news with deep sadness particularly as the attack occurred in the same week he marked his 100th birthday. Fasoranti called for the country’s security crisis to be “decisively addressed without further delay.”
Amnesty International described the situation as “alarming,” noting that at least 82 schoolchildren were abducted between 13 and 15 May across separate attacks in Borno and Oyo. According to the rights group, 42 pupils were taken on 13 and 14 May following attacks on schools in the Askira Uba and Chibok local councils of Borno State, while a further 40 were reportedly abducted during the Oriire raids on 15 May. Amnesty urged authorities to take immediate steps to rescue the victims and secure schools across the country.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele also condemned the abductions, describing them as deeply troubling given that $30 million was raised in 2014 specifically to improve security in Nigerian schools. Bamidele, who also serves as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review, said the attacks underscored the need to fast-track the establishment of state police, a matter currently before the National Assembly. He called for strategic, coordinated measures to make schools safe and to curb the rising number of out-of-school children.
The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade I, urged the Federal Government to move away from reactive responses and invest instead in proactive intelligence systems capable of identifying threats before they occur. Speaking through his Director of Media and Publicity, Bode Durojaiye, the monarch called for the deployment of modern tracking technologies and stronger collaboration with local communities to improve grassroots intelligence. The Alaafin also made a cash donation to support ongoing rescue operations.
Retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police Ade Ajakaiye took a different angle, questioning the value of President Bola Tinubu’s recently approved appointment of Maj-Gen. Adeyinka Fadadewa (rtd) as Special Adviser on Homeland Security. In a statement titled “Creation of Homeland Security: Strengthening the Nigeria Police, Not Expanding Bureaucracy,” Ajakaiye argued that Nigeria already has sufficient security agencies including the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and the Armed Forces and that the country’s core problem was institutional weakness, not a shortage of agencies. He warned that the new office risked expanding an already bloated security bureaucracy without tackling the underlying challenges.
In a related development, Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke ordered the immediate revitalisation of the Safe School Initiative following the Oyo attacks, directing the state’s Ministry of Education and relevant security agencies to strengthen precautions against any spillover into Osun.
Separately, the Nigeria Police Force is mourning 17 officers killed during a terrorist attack on the Nigerian Army Special Forces School in Buni Yadi, Gujba Local Council of Yobe State on 8 May. The officers were undergoing advanced counter-terrorism training at the military facility when attackers struck from multiple directions at approximately 1.15 a.m. Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu paid tribute to the fallen officers, describing them as “courageous and dedicated personnel” who demonstrated exceptional commitment to national security.
Tags: #Afenifere #Oba Akeem Abimbola Owoade #Pa Reuben Fasoranti