ICYMI: Why abducted Oyo teachers were killed by kidnappers — Rescued school principal

The principal of Community High School in Oriire Local Government Area, Mrs. Rachael Alamu, who was rescued, has provided an explanation regarding the circumstances that led to the deaths of the teachers who were kidnapped in the state.

The deceased teachers include Mr. Michael Oyedokun, a Mathematics instructor, who was beheaded in the captors' hideout, and Mr. Esiyan Adegboye, 49, who was shot during the invasion.

Mr. Adegboye was laid to rest in Ogbomoso on May 22.

Mrs. Alamu shared this information while addressing reporters on Monday.

The principal, along with the other rescued children and teachers, was welcomed by Governor Seyi Makinde at the State Government House.

She stated, "There are moments when we hold onto hope that we will all emerge alive. The terrorists executed Mr. Michael, the first teacher, on the second day of our captivity, and Deacon, the second teacher, was killed on the first Sunday of June.

“They killed them purposely because they thought it would force the hand of the government to provide them whatever they wanted. They already knew that the whole world was interested in our case. We have scars already, and we believe that God will heal us. We appreciate everyone that contributed to this success.”

Recounting their experience in captivity, the principal stressed that the victims spent most of the 56 days in the open forest, exposed to harsh weather conditions while trying to keep the children alive and emotionally stable.

“You can only imagine it. It was not easy. We were in the forest, in the open, most of the time, under the sun and under the rain, with the children. But we kept going because there was no way out.
“We knew it was only God that could help us, and we believed people were praying for us. That kept us going,” she said.

Alamu revealed that while she did not experience physical assault, many of the younger students endured harsh beatings whenever they cried or made noise.

The Federal Government transferred the rescued students and teachers to the state government.

A video posted by Oyo Affairs depicted the rescued individuals disembarking from a van under the tight security of military personnel upon their arrival at the secretariat.

The footage showed the victims exiting the vehicle as armed security forces accompanied them into the premises.

This arrival comes after the Federal Government announced on Friday that security agencies had successfully facilitated the release of all abducted students and teachers following over 50 days in captivity.