Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has alleged that the Oyo State Government was behind the recent abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in parts of the state, claiming the incident was intended to embarrass President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Fayose made the allegation during a television interview, where he questioned how the Oyo State Government handled the incident and suggested that political motives may have shaped its response.
His remarks came after gunmen abducted pupils and teachers in several local government areas of Oyo State on Friday, an incident that attracted nationwide attention and triggered intervention from the Federal Government.
Following the kidnapping, President Tinubu sent a high-level delegation to the affected communities and reassured residents that efforts were being intensified to secure the victims’ release.
Commenting on the situation, Fayose maintained that state governments are primarily responsible for addressing local security issues and should not be quick to place blame on the Federal Government.
“Let me branch to Oyo State, before you get to the president in the hierarchy of leadership and governance, there is local government, there is state, state has security votes and there are people that are supposed to be working,” he said.
Fayose further alleged that Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, did not react swiftly to the incident, claiming political engagements took precedence over efforts to address the crisis.
“In Oyo State, I strongly believe though I might be wrong but this sometimes might be orchestrated. The governor of Oyo State had his nomination and that of his candidates in the face of this abduction,” he said.
“He did not take any action, no steps were taken, it was after those nominations that he went to the families to visit them.”
The former governor also suggested that the abduction may have been deliberately planned to portray the Federal Government negatively.
“I sometimes believe that the abduction at Oyo School was orchestrated by the Oyo State Government to blackmail President Tinubu,” Fayose stated.
At the time of filing this report, neither Governor Makinde nor the Oyo State Government had issued an official response to the allegations.
The abduction has continued to attract reactions from political figures and security experts, with renewed calls for stronger action to combat insecurity and improve the protection of schools across the country.
