IBUJA, NIGERIA — The euphoria following the high-stakes rescue of the kidnapped Oyo State schoolchildren and teachers has turned somber after the newly freed school principal, Mrs. Rachael Folawe Alamu, revealed that the terrorists deliberately executed two of her colleagues during their grueling 56 days in captivity.
Speaking at the Executive Chamber of the Governor’s Office at the Oyo State Secretariat in Agodi, Ibadan on Monday, July 13, 2026, the visibly traumatized Principal of Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele, recounted the harrowing experience. She spoke during the official handover ceremony where the Nigerian Army, having completed 48 hours of medical and psychological evaluations, formally transferred the freed hostages to Governor Seyi Makinde.
Calculated Executions to Force Government’s Hand
According to Mrs. Alamu, the heavily armed bandits did not kill the teachers at random. Instead, they carried out cold-blooded executions as a psychological strategy to break the will of the state and force the government into negotiating terms, which included the release of an ivory-tower terrorist kingpin currently facing federal prosecution.
Providing the identities of the deceased victims, Mrs. Alamu tearfully narrated:
“Mr. Michael was killed on the second day of our stay, while Deacon was killed on the first Sunday of June. They killed them purposely because they felt that would force the hand of the government to give them whatever they wanted.”
The abductors continuously subjected the surviving teachers and pupils—who were stolen from their classrooms on May 15, 2026—to intense psychological torture. The bandits repeatedly lied to the victims, telling them that the Federal Government and the general public had abandoned them because they were considered “valueless” to society.
“We Have Scars, But We Will Heal”
Despite the execution of their colleagues and the suffocating atmosphere of fear, Mrs. Alamu noted that the hostages held tightly to hope, drawing spiritual strength from a deep internal belief that Nigerians outside were praying for them.
“So many times they used fear to subdue us. It was until we got out that we discovered the whole world was on our case. We have scars already, but we believe with time we will heal,” she added, expressing immense gratitude to President Bola Tinubu, Governor Makinde, and the joint security task forces.
The Background of the Abduction
The tragic crisis began nearly two months ago when heavily armed terrorists overran three academic facilities simultaneously in Oriire Local Government Area: Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele; Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota; and L.A. Primary School in Ogbomoso.
The victims were finally rescued last Friday through a grueling, zero-ransom military counter-offensive spearheaded by the 2 Division of the Nigerian Army. The operation, which cost the life of the heroic tactical commander Lieutenant Felix Ademe (F.A.) Isaac, resulted in the neutralization of several bandits and the arrest of eight terrorists now in Department of State Services (DSS) custody.
President Bola Tinubu has already vowed that justice will be fully served for the slain teachers and the fallen soldier, reaffirming that his administration will maintain its hardline stance of never conceding to or negotiating prisoner exchanges with terrorist factions.
