By Eshioromeh Sebastian
President Bola Tinubu has revealed that the decision to track and arrest the families of kidnappers involved in the Oriire school abduction was a deliberate strategy to dismantle the criminal network from its roots.
Speaking on Thursday during a meeting with a delegation of Oyo State traditional rulers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Tinubu defended the government’s approach, explaining that the kidnappers’ demand for ransom and the release of their jailed accomplices left the administration with no choice but to adopt unconventional tactics.
“These criminals wanted us to release from detention members of their criminal gangs that were already arrested. That was one of their conditions, outside of the money they were looking for,” the President told the monarchs, led by the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja.
“And we said no deal. We are not going to negotiate with criminals. They committed murder, and we were ready to finish with their families, members of their own communities. They grew up somewhere.”
The Oriire abduction, which occurred on May 15, 2026, saw gunmen attack three schools—Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, and L.A. Primary School—in Esiele and Yawota communities, taking approximately 39 pupils and seven teachers hostage. A mathematics teacher, Michael Oyedokun, was beheaded during the attack.
Tinubu clarified that the arrests were not arbitrary but were intelligence-driven operations aimed at applying pressure on the abductors by targeting their support systems. He noted that the military’s success in rescuing the victims after 56 days in captivity—concluding on July 10—was largely due to the geographical intelligence gathered, which included tracking the kidnappers’ familial connections.
“The security event taught the Federal Government new lessons and demanded structural adaptation,” Tinubu said, adding that the expansion of the army from eight to twelve divisions was a direct geographical and numerical answer to the Oriire abductions.
“We have the geography of the forest. We know what it is, and in answer to it, you’ve seen that from eight divisions, we are now moving to 12 divisions, to shorten the response time, to give that response time the teeth that is needed for us to defeat terrorism and banditry.”
The President further justified the tracking of families as part of a broader strategy to weaken the kidnappers’ operational base, arguing that communities must be held accountable for harbouring criminals. He urged traditional rulers to strengthen local intelligence and encourage citizens to report strange movements in their neighbourhoods.
“The mention of intelligence is very important, and I want you to take it to our people, to be extra vigilant, to look at things critically, know their neighbourhoods, know their areas, report strange people,” he appealed.
Tinubu also announced plans to retrain and re-equip forest guards as frontline security assets, moving them beyond wildlife enforcement to active criminal pursuit. He reiterated his administration’s commitment to establishing state police with safeguards against abuse, adding that traditional rulers would have a role to play in the new security architecture.
Responding, Oba Ladoja thanked the President for the successful rescue operation and commended the armed forces for their professionalism. He pledged the council’s unflinching support in ensuring grassroots cooperation with security agencies.
The Presidency had earlier described the rescue as an intelligence-led, kinetic and non-kinetic operation that succeeded without paying any ransom. Eight abductors were arrested during the operation, with several others neutralised.
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