The camp of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has questioned conflicting accounts surrounding the release of the 44 pupils and teachers abducted in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, following comments by one of the freed teachers.
In a Facebook post on Saturday, Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, challenged the Presidency’s description of the incident as a “rescue” after one of the victims, Mr. Olatunde Zacchaeus, said during a radio interview that they were “released” by their abductors.
On July 10, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, announced that the 44 pupils and teachers were rescued by security forces after spending 56 days in captivity.
According to the Presidency, eight kidnappers were arrested while others were neutralised during the operation, adding that there was “no quid pro quo” in securing the victims’ freedom.
However, Zacchaeus, who spent 56 days in captivity with 43 other victims, told Info FM that the abductors released them. A video of his remarks was later shared by Oyo Matters.
Reacting, Ibe questioned the discrepancy between the teacher’s account and the Federal Government’s position.
“Is it that Zacchaeus, as a teacher, does not know the difference between to release and rescue, or is he an ‘agent’ of the opposition or what?”
He said the teacher’s account was “in stark contradiction to what the Tinubu-led APC administration told the nation.”
Ibe also linked the development to concerns over ransom payments, stating that it “brings to the fore the issue of state sponsored payment of ransom to terrorists and bandits and conspiracy theories that some of the so-called abductions are state-sponsored.”
He backed Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde’s call for an independent investigation into the incident.
“Does this revelation now explain why Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State demanded for a United Nations independent investigation of the issue?”
“I agree 100% with Makinde, there’s a compelling need for an independent investigation of an international dimension to establish what truly happened in Oriire, Oyo State, Mussa village in Askari/Uba local government of Borno and in other places where abductions has become the rule and not the exception,” Ibe said.
He also called for an update on “the plan for the rescue or release of the abducted school children in Borno.”
Gunmen attacked three schools in Oriire Local Government Area on May 15, abducting 46 pupils, teachers and a toddler, while two teachers were later killed in captivity.
The victims regained their freedom on July 10 after what security agencies described as an intelligence-led joint operation involving the Nigerian Army, Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Services (DSS), and other security agencies.
The Oyo State Government described the victims’ freedom as a victory for “principled leadership,” maintaining that it resisted pressure to pay ransom.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has since arraigned three men in connection with the abduction on terrorism-related charges.
