Makinde visits rescued Oyo school children, teachers, hails military

Governor Seyi Makinde on Saturday expressed relief over the safe rescue of all the abducted teachers and students at Ahoro Esiele area of Oyo state.

The governor stated this when he visited the rescued victims at the 2 Division Nigerian Army Medical Facility, Odogbo in Ibadan.

He stressed that the rescued persons stands as a significant development and commended the security personnel involved in the operation.

Interacting with the children and their teachers during the visit, Governor Makinde assured them of continued medical and psychological support, saying, he was delighted that the children had regained their freedom.,

“I am very happy that the children are back, all 39 of them, alongside five of the seven teachers. We give glory to God, and we appreciate our troops, the officers and men who played a significant role in securing their release,” he said.

Makinde added, “Having interacted with the children and their teachers, I can say that they are happy to be out of captivity. When anyone’s freedom is taken away, it affects their state of mind, but they are grateful to be back.

“Some of them are still very weak and will require medical attention. There are also post-traumatic issues that need to be addressed, but we have a team ready to provide the necessary support and care.”

The governor condoled with families of security personnel who lost their lives during the operation, assuring them that their sacrifices would not be forgotten, saying, “we also remember the officers and personnel we lost during this process. To all the families who lost their loved ones, we want to assure them that their sacrifices will not be in vain.”

Speaking further on plans to reunite the victims with their families, he said medical and psychological assessments would continue for the next 48 hours before the formal handover process.

“By Monday, we expect that an assessment would have been completed, and there may be a formal transfer from the military to the state government. From there, we will manage the process going forward,” he said.

According to him, arrangements were already being made to allow family members to visit their loved ones, particularly a young girl among the victims who had repeatedly asked for her mother.

“Today, we are already putting logistics in place to allow some family members to come and see them. There is a little girl among them who has continuously been asking, ‘Where is my mum? Where is my mum?’ We want to make it possible for her mother to come and reunite with her,” he said.

The governor hinted that he would later provide a detailed briefing to the people of Oyo state and Nigerians on the circumstances surrounding the abduction and rescue operation.

“Later in the week, I will officially brief the people of Oyo State and the nation at large on what exactly transpired,” he said.