The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has strongly condemned the abduction of more than 45 pupils, students and teachers from three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, describing the incident as “an assault on the conscience of Nigeria and the future of the Southwest.”
In a statement issued on Thursday, May 21, 2026, the pan-Yoruba sociocultural organisation expressed outrage over the coordinated attack that occurred on Friday, May 15, 2026, at Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yaworan; Community Grammar School, Esiele; and L.A. Primary School.
The council said the attack on innocent children and teachers represented a dangerous escalation of insecurity in the Southwest and warned that schools must never be turned into “hunting grounds for kidnappers and bandits.”
The YCE called on the Federal Government to immediately deploy special forces, intelligence assets and logistics support to ensure the unconditional release of all abducted victims.
The organisation also urged governors of the six Southwest states, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Ekiti, and Lagos, to put aside partisan interests and strengthen inter-state security cooperation to safeguard lives and property across the region.
“Yorubaland cannot afford to become the next frontier of mass abduction,” the statement read.
According to the council, the Oyo incident reflects a deeper national security crisis and underscores the urgent need to strengthen community and regional security architecture across the Southwest.
The YCE therefore called on Southwest governments to provide additional support, training, equipment and legal backing for the Amotekun Corps to enable intelligence-led operations against criminal elements.
The council further urged the six governors to recognise and engage the office of the Aare Ona-Kakanfo of Yorubaland, alongside Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, and other indigenous security groups in efforts to protect communities across the region.
It also appealed to the Oyo State Government to establish a joint security task force for real-time intelligence sharing among Southwest states in order to prevent cross-border movements by criminals.
The group advocated the deployment of armed school protection units in high-risk local government areas, especially communities bordering forest regions.
“Our children all over Yorubaland are not to be used as collateral damage. Every day we delay decisive action, we may lose another child’s future and another parent’s peace of mind,” the statement added.
The YCE expressed solidarity with the families of the abducted pupils and teachers and sympathised with the family of a mathematics teacher reportedly killed during the attack.
The council prayed for strength and comfort for all those affected by the tragedy.
