(Osun Youths protest abduction of Oyo pupils. Photo Credit: Peoples Gazette Nigeria)
Hundreds of youths and civil society advocates took to the streets of Osogbo, the Osun State capital, on Thursday in a peaceful demonstration demanding the immediate release of schoolchildren and teachers abd¥cted in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The demonstrators marched through major roads in the city, chanting solidarity songs and calling on security agencies and government authorities to step up efforts to rescue the victims.
Carrying placards with messages condemning insecurity, the protesters repeatedly chanted “Release our children now,” voicing deep concern over the fate of those still being held in captivity.
The protest leaders described the abd¥cted children as the future of the nation, warning that persistent att@cks on schools pose a grave threat to education and national development.
Speakers during the demonstration appealed to the Federal Government, state governments, security agencies, traditional rulers, and other key stakeholders to work together to secure the safe return of all the victims.
The protesters stressed that children deserve to pursue their education in safety and without fear, and that att@cks on schools severely erode public confidence in the country’s security framework.
They also urged relevant authorities to act without further delay, pointing out that every additional day spent in captivity risks deepening the psychological trauma already being experienced by the abd¥cted children and their teachers.
According to reports making rounds on social media, the Osun State council of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) had earlier in the week staged its own protest over the kidn@pping, marching from Ataoja School of Science in Osogbo to the Osun State Secretariat in Abere.
The union had used the occasion to demand urgent action from both the Oyo State and Federal Governments and called for the immediate rescue and return of all abd¥cted victims to their families.