Oyo Under Siege: Curfew Imposed as Authorities Hunt for Abducted Students

The Oyo State Government has declared a stringent 16-hour daily curfew across 10 local government areas that border the Old Oyo National Park. This decisive measure, approved by Governor Seyi Makinde, is part of intensified efforts by security agencies to rescue over 40 pupils and teachers who were abducted from their schools in the Oriire local government area on May 15. The curfew commenced on a Wednesday, running daily from 4 p.m. to 8 a.m., initially for a 48-hour period. The affected local government areas include Oriire, Oorelope, Irepo, Saki West, Saki East, Atisbo, Itesiwaju, Iseyin, Olorunsogo, and Atiba.

Musibau Babatunde, the Secretary to the State Government, announced the directive, stating that the restriction aims to fortify security operations in communities adjacent to the national park. He urged residents within these areas to adhere to the curfew and cooperate fully with security agencies to ensure its successful implementation. This declaration coincides with intensified rescue operations around the Old Oyo National Park, where security forces have reportedly blocked key escape routes utilized by the abductors. However, the Oyo State Government did not immediately specify the particular security threats that prompted the curfew, though it aligns with heightened security concerns following the mass abduction.

The abduction incident on May 15 saw armed gunmen attack three schools in the Ahoro-Esinle and Yawota communities of Oriire Local Government Area. The targeted schools were Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota, as well as Community Grammar School and L.A Primary School in Esiele. During the raid, the attackers gruesomely beheaded Michael Oyedokun, a mathematics teacher, before taking dozens of pupils, teachers, and school officials into the forests surrounding the Old Oyo National Park. This horrific event sparked widespread outrage across Oyo State, leading to school closures and protests by residents and civil society groups demanding immediate government action for the victims' release.

Since the abduction, security agencies have launched extensive search-and-rescue operations across the vast forests and remote communities encircling the national park. These efforts, however, have not been without casualties. Governor Makinde, addressing protesters in Ibadan on June 16, disclosed that a Nigerian Army lieutenant was killed during one such rescue operation. The governor described the officer’s death as a painful sacrifice made in the ongoing mission to secure the release of the schoolchildren and teachers. He affirmed that Oyo State would not permit the abduction to escalate into a prolonged national tragedy reminiscent of the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ kidnapping, assuring that security agencies are deploying every available resource to ensure the safe return of the victims while minimizing further loss of lives.

The Old Oyo National Park and its adjoining forests have increasingly become focal points for criminal groups involved in kidnapping, banditry, and other violent crimes. Earlier in January, five officers guarding the National Park Service were killed by gunmen in an attack on the National Park Office in Oloka Village, Oriire Local Government Area. Security experts have consistently warned that the extensive forest corridors connecting parts of Oyo, Kwara, and Niger states provide crucial cover for armed groups operating across state boundaries. Residents of communities surrounding the park have also voiced concerns about recurring attacks, kidnappings, and violent incursions in recent years. The newly imposed curfew is therefore expected to significantly restrict movement across the affected local government areas, thereby facilitating security forces in their continued operations within and around the forest belt.