By Our Correspondent
\nWorried by non release of the abducted students and teachers of Oriire government school in Oyo state,Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), civil society organisations and other residents of Ogun State on Tuesday joined the nationwide protest against the abduction of students and teachers in Oyo State.<\/p>\n
The demonstration followed the abduction of 39 students and seven teachers during attacks on several schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State about two weeks ago.<\/p>\n
The affected schools are Community Grammar School and L.A. Primary School in Ahoro-Esinle, as well as Baptist Nursery and Primary School in Yawota.<\/p>\n
Our reporter gatheted that one of the abducted teachers from Community Grammar School, Mr Michael Oyedokun, a Mathematics teacher, was reportedly beheaded by the kidnappers.<\/p>\n
The protest came a day after some Ogun residents, including nursing mothers, staged a similar demonstration on Monday.<\/p>\n
Carrying placards with inscriptions such as \u201cSet Our Teachers and Pupils Free,\u201d \u201cStop the Attacks on Schools,\u201d \u201cRelease Our Teachers and Learners Unconditionally,\u201d and \u201cGovernment Must Rise Up to Its Security Responsibilities,\u201d the protesters marched through major streets in Abeokuta to Governor’s office, Oke-Mosan.<\/p>\n
Other messages on the banners read: \u201cOne Abducted Child, One Nation in Chains,\u201d \u201cNUT Stands in Solidarity with Its Members in Captivity,\u201d and \u201cNigeria, Our Blackboards Are Turning into Graveyards.\u201d<\/p>\n
The demonstrators also sang solidarity songs and used megaphones to draw public attention to what they described as the growing threat insecurity poses to education.<\/p>\n
\u201cElectricity, zero. Security, zero. The only system we are managing is education, and now they want to collapse it. We will resist all such plans,\u201d some of the protesters chanted.<\/p>\n
Speaking with journalists, the National Chairman of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Comrade Yinka Folarin, called on security agencies to intensify efforts toward rescuing the victims and protecting lives.<\/p>\n
He said the protest was also aimed at raising public awareness on the need for citizens to support efforts against terrorism and violence.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a matter of responsibility, we are not supposed to live in fear in our own country. Government must create an enabling environment, while citizens must support efforts toward maintaining peace and sustainable security.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are in a dilemma as a nation. Our freedom of movement is no longer guaranteed, and we continue to witness the dehumanisation and humiliation of innocent victims. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Every well-meaning Nigerian must rise to speak for the voiceless,\u201d Folarin said.<\/p>\n
Also speaking, the National President of the NUT, Comrade Titus Amba, represented by the union\u2019s National Vice-President, Comrade Titilope Adebanjo, lamented that teachers and students now attend classes under constant fear.<\/p>\n
He appealed to President Bola Tinubu to treat the matter as urgent and ensure the immediate release of the abductees.<\/p>\n
\u201cEducation remains one of the few enduring legacies we have as a nation. It is unfortunate that insecurity is threatening to destroy it. Teachers are in classrooms with fear, students are in classrooms with fear. This should not be so,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Ogun State Chairman of the NLC, Comrade Hameed Benco, expressed frustration over the situation, warning that the protest could be followed by more drastic actions if the government fails to act.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want all the abductees released. This nationwide protest is to express our feelings to the Federal Government. If nothing is done, further actions may follow. We expect the government to act now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Benco also urged residents to support security efforts by reporting suspicious activities, while calling on the Ogun State Government to strengthen intelligence-driven policing.<\/p>\n
Similarly, the Ogun State Chairman of the NUT, Comrade Sewakanu Oladipupo, urged the government to reinforce security architecture across the country to prevent further attacks on schools.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeeing our members treated like criminals is frightening. This is a traumatic period for teachers across Nigeria. We are all living in fear. No one feels safe,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) in Ogun State, Comrade Adejoke Bello, also expressed concern over the welfare of the abducted children.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese children are too young to be subjected to the psychological and emotional trauma they are currently facing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Our Correspondent Worried by non release of the abducted students and teachers of Oriire government school in Oyo state,Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), civil society organisations and other residents of Ogun State on Tuesday joined the nationwide protest against the abduction of students and teachers in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14243,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-law-crime"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14242"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14244,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14242\/revisions\/14244"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}