LAGOS — A leading Nigerian media association has demanded that the federal government accelerate rescue operations for dozens of students and teachers recently abducted by armed groups in Oyo and Borno states.
In a statement released over the weekend, the Association of Corporate Online Editors (ACOE) expressed deep concern over the persistent security vulnerabilities plaguing educational institutions across West Africa’s most populous nation.
In a press release signed by Osby Isibor, the association’s Public Relations Officer the group voiced profound empathy and unwavering solidarity with the families, teachers, and management of the affected schools, warning that targeting children strikes at the very future of the country.”No parent should ever have to experience the agony of sending a child to school, only to wait in weeks of silence and agonizing uncertainty,” said ACOE Chairman Sola Akingboye. “The mental and psychological toll on these families is unimaginable.
Separate Attacks, Growing Crisis
The statement highlights two distinct, high-profile incidents that underscore Nigeria’s sprawling security crisis:
Oyo State: In the south-western Oriire Local Government Area, families have been left without answers for several weeks following a mass abduction.
Borno State: In the volatile north-east, armed men launched a brazen assault on the Government Day Secondary School in Lassa, disrupting students who were sitting for their National Examinations Council (NECO) exams.
Mass kidnappings for ransom, often perpetrated by heavily armed criminal gangs known locally as bandits or by Islamist militant groups, have plagued Nigeria for over a decade. School abductions, which gained global notoriety with the 2014 Chibok girls kidnapping, continue to threaten the country’s education system, forcing hundreds of schools to shut down periodically.
Call for Advanced Surveillance
ACOE has called on federal authorities to deploy advanced intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations to track down the perpetrators and secure the unconditional release of all captives.”Security agencies must move swiftly to restore the confidence of citizens in the safety of our schools,” Mr. Akingboye added, pledging that the media body would continue to use its platforms to advocate for transparency and the protection of human lives.
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