Rescued Oyo teacher refutes claims of ‘premeditated kidnapping’, explaining the real clothes of her students

One of the teachers rescued from the mass kidnapping of students and school staff in Oriire Local Government Area of ​​Oyo State, Zachery Olatunde, has rubbished claims circulating on social media that the kidnapping was staged, explaining that the students were wearing matching native clothes because they were kidnapped on Friday, when such clothes were officially worn at school.

Olatunde, who spent 56 days in captivity with 43 other victims, made the clarification in a video shared by Oyo Matters, saying that critics had misinterpreted the circumstances surrounding the emergence of the students after their rescue.

Responding to claims that the children’s coordinated clothing in Ankara indicated that the kidnapping was planned, the teacher said that the students were simply wearing the same clothes they wore when gunmen attacked their school on May 15.

“They said the children were wearing matching ankara clothes. Aren’t they in Oyo State? Do they know that the government has ordered that school children must wear regional clothes on Fridays?

“Private school students now wear traditional clothes on Fridays. Our teachers wear traditional clothes, but middle school students wear school uniforms,” ​​he said.

He also responded to other claims questioning why some of the victims didn’t look too dirty despite spending almost two months in the jungle.

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According to Olatunde, the kidnappers occasionally washed the captives’ clothes if they got too dirty.

“The kidnappers were the ones who washed our clothes several times while we were in captivity, and they realized that we already smelled. Don’t they (critics) see how rough and dirty we are as teachers? Don’t they see how rough our beards are, like those of forest mice?” Olatunde said.

The teacher described accusations that the entire incident was staged as insensitive and disrespectful to the victims, pointing out that many lives were lost in the incident.

“Those who say the kidnapping was staged, don’t know what they are saying. If it was staged, would they have killed two people? If it was staged, what we experienced in that place was not good at all,” he said.

He appealed to Nigerians to stop spreading false narratives about the incident, and stressed that the kidnapping was real and traumatizing for everyone involved.

“So those who say it’s fabricated are all lies. It’s not fabricated. It’s real. So please stop saying things like that,” he added.

The Federal Government announced on July 10 that 44 students and teachers kidnapped from Community Grammar School, Baptist Primary and Kindergarten, and LA Primary School in Esiele and Yawota communities in Oriire Local Government Area have regained their freedom following a coordinated security operation.

The victims were kidnapped on May 15 when heavily armed men stormed the three schools.

In the attack, the Assistant Principal of LA Primary School, Joel Adesiyan, was shot dead while trying to escape, while a Mathematics teacher, Michael Oyedokun, was later killed by the kidnappers while the victim was held hostage for a long time.

The rescue operation was carried out through a joint effort involving the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Police, Department of State Services, Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps, Amotekun Corps and local vigilante groups.

The presidency stated that all victims were rescued through security operations without payment of ransom or any concessions to the kidnappers.