Academic activities were disrupted across public schools in Oyo State on Monday as teachers complied with a directive from the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) to stage a peaceful protest over the abduction of teachers and students in Oriire Local Government Area.
The protest followed the kidnapping of 47 teachers and students from public and private schools in Ahoro Esiele Community, Oriire LGA. Public schools across the 11 local government areas in Ibadanland remained shut, with classrooms deserted and school gates locked.
Students who arrived at schools in areas including Molete, Orita Challenge, New Garage, and Odo Ona were turned back as academic activities were suspended. However, Senior Secondary School 3 students sitting for terminal examinations were reportedly allowed into school premises.
A teacher, who spoke anonymously, said the action was aimed at showing solidarity with the victims, who have remained in captivity for more than two weeks.
“We cannot begin to imagine the pain, fear and trauma the kidnapped students and their teachers have endured over the past 18 days,” the teacher said, urging both the federal and Oyo State governments to intensify efforts to secure their release.
The protest also attracted support from civil society groups and residents, who called for stronger security measures around schools and vulnerable communities.
In neighbouring Ogun State, residents staged a solidarity protest in Abeokuta over worsening insecurity and the abduction in Oyo. Protesters carried placards demanding the release of the victims and calling on the government to tackle kidnapping and terrorism nationwide.
Speaking during the protest, Pastor Juwon Owolabi said Nigerians were increasingly living in fear due to rising insecurity. He warned that no citizen now feels completely safe and urged the government to take urgent and decisive action.
Several protesters, including business owners and nursing mothers, expressed concern over the growing insecurity, saying the situation had affected both family life and economic activities.
Meanwhile, the NUT announced plans for a nationwide solidarity protest on Tuesday. NUT President, Audu Titus Amba, said teachers across the country would join the demonstration to draw attention to the worsening insecurity facing schools.
Amba lamented that some abducted teachers and students were allegedly being used as shields by terrorists, describing the development as disturbing and dangerous.
“If the school environment is not safe, how are we going to teach? How will the children learn?” he asked, while calling on communities and security agencies to work together to protect schools.
Also reacting, the The Muslim Congress urged the Federal Government to immediately rescue the abducted students and teachers. The group warned that recurring kidnappings and attacks on schools had become a national crisis requiring more than temporary solutions.
In Borno State, residents criticised what they described as the Federal Government’s silence over the abduction of 42 primary and junior secondary school students in Mussa community, Askira Uba Local Government Area.
Civil society leader Abubakar Suleiman argued that the response to the Borno incident had not matched the attention given to the Oyo abduction. He noted that while federal officials quickly visited Oyo State, there had been no similar intervention in Borno despite multiple kidnappings.
Political analyst Abubakar Kareto also faulted the disparity in response, saying both incidents exposed the vulnerability of rural schools and highlighted the dangers children face in accessing education in Nigeria.
Residents and advocacy groups in both states called for improved school security, faster rescue operations, and sustained action against kidnappers and terrorist groups threatening educational institutions across the country.
