Pressure is mounting on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to secure the release of dozens of abducted schoolchildren and teachers in Oyo State, as the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) issued a 24-hour ultimatum demanding urgent action.
The rights group warned on Saturday that any further delay in rescuing the victims would call into question the Federal Government’s constitutional responsibility to protect lives and property.
The pupils and their teachers were seized on May 16 when armed men stormed communities in the Ahoro-Esinle area of Oriire Local Government Area, triggering panic as families watched their children taken away.
More than two weeks on, the victims remain in captivity — a situation that has sparked protests in Ibadan and intensified public anger over what many see as a slow and ineffective security response.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA said the prolonged detention of the victims had become a national embarrassment and a test of leadership.
“It is sad that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was shown during the last Sallah holiday enjoying the religious ceremony with his equally happy grandchildren, but it is timely to remind the President that the Oyo State children held in bondage are our own children and kinsmen,” the group said.
While acknowledging ongoing rescue efforts, the organisation argued that the absence of results after several weeks reflects deeper weaknesses in the country’s security architecture.
“The continued captivity of these victims raises profound questions about the effectiveness of the nation’s security response and the government’s ability to fulfil its constitutional responsibility to protect lives and property,” it added.
Citing Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, HURIWA stressed that safeguarding citizens is the primary duty of government and warned against what it described as the creeping normalisation of school abductions.
The group also backed ongoing demonstrations by parents, teachers and civil society actors in Oyo State, describing the protests as justified. However, it criticised organised labour, including the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Nigeria Union of Teachers, for what it called a muted national response.
“The abduction of schoolchildren is an attack on education and the future of Nigeria,” HURIWA said, urging broader civic pressure until the victims are freed.
Families of the abducted pupils continue to wait in anguish, with many expressing frustration over the pace of rescue efforts.
The Oyo State Government has confirmed the incident and maintains that security agencies are working to secure the victims’ release, but public impatience is growing as the days pass without a breakthrough.
