The principal of Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, Mrs. Alamu Folawe, on Monday recounted the traumatic 56-day ordeal she, fellow teachers and pupils endured in captivity, revealing that their abductors deliberately executed two captives in an attempt to force the government to meet their demands.
Folawe spoke during the official handover of the rescued victims to Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde by the Nigerian Army, describing their weeks in captivity as a nightmare marked by fear, uncertainty and constant psychological torture.
She recalled that what began as a normal school day on May 15 quickly descended into chaos after armed bandits invaded their schools and whisked them away into the bush, where they remained for 56 days.
“We’re grateful to God. On May 15, a Friday that started well ended in chaos for us, and for 56 days we were in the bush. It was a harrowing experience, but we thank God for seeing us through. We went through a lot,” she said.
According to the principal, the kidnappers repeatedly deployed fear and emotional manipulation to weaken the resolve of the captives, insisting that the government had abandoned them and no longer cared about securing their release.
“A relief to us is that Nigerians were praying for us. Many times, they used fear to subdue us. At one point they told us the government wasn’t interested in our case anymore because they didn’t value us. But there were times we held on to hope that we would come out alive,” she recounted.
Folawe disclosed that the kidnappers murdered two members of the group to pressure the government into conceding to their demands.
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“Mr. Michael was killed on the second day, while Deacon was killed on the first Sunday in June. They killed them purposely because they felt that would force the government to give them whatever they wanted,” she said.
Although the victims have regained their freedom, she admitted that the emotional scars of the experience would remain with them for a long time.
“It was until we got out that we discovered the whole world was on our case. We have scars already, but we believe with time we will heal,” she added.
She expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu, Governor Seyi Makinde, the Nigerian Army, the Department of State Services, other security agencies involved in the rescue mission and Nigerians whose prayers and support sustained their hope throughout the ordeal.
The victims were abducted on May 15 when armed bandits attacked Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, Baptist Nursery and Primary School in Yawota, and L.A. Primary School in Ogbomoso, all within Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The attack also claimed the lives of Assistant Headmaster Joel Adesiyan and a commercial motorcyclist, prompting the Oyo State Government to close schools in four local government areas while security agencies intensified rescue operations.
The Presidency announced on Friday that all the abducted pupils and teachers had been rescued in a coordinated operation.
Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga disclosed that eight suspected kidnappers were arrested and are currently in the custody of the Department of State Services, while several others were neutralised during the operation.
He also stated that no ransom was paid and no prisoner exchange was carried out to secure the victims’ freedom.