Armed attackers who abducted students and teachers from two communities in Oyo State reportedly conducted surveillance in the area days before carrying out the operation, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari has revealed.
The senator representing Oyo North Senatorial District disclosed this during an interview on Arise News Prime Time, where he provided fresh details on the May 15, 2026 attack on Yawota and Esiele communities in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
According to Buhari, the attackers first struck Yawota, where they abducted nine students before moving to neighbouring Esiele, located just a few minutes away, to seize more students and teachers.
“Look at this school, for example in Esiele and Yawota. They first went to Yawota and picked nine students,” Buhari said.
“From Yawota to Esiele is about five to eight minutes’ drive and then they came to Yawota to pick the remaining students and teachers. One of the teachers was trying to escape through the window; he was shot.”
He added that the violence extended beyond school staff and students.
“Another person, he is not even a teacher, he is just an okada rider. He was dropping somebody from Yawota to Esiele and they thought he was chasing them, he was shot,” the senator said.
The attack, which left communities traumatised and classrooms deserted, saw heavily armed assailants force students and teachers into the bush, sparking widespread fear among residents and parents.
Buhari noted that the affected schools were located in remote rural communities with limited infrastructure, making them easy targets for criminal elements.
“Now back to the Safer Schools Initiative; in most cases, schools in the rural areas are always about three, four classrooms. It is a very remote area,” he said.
The lawmaker also recounted how unusual commercial activity in the community days before the attack may have been an early warning sign that went unnoticed.
He explained that a local food vendor experienced a sudden surge in sales as unfamiliar individuals purchased large quantities of food in the days leading up to the abductions.
“Two days before the strike, there is a woman selling beans and bread. Normally, her take-home is maybe N1,000, N1,200,” Buhari said.
“But for the two days before the strike, she was making N10,000, N15,000, N20,000. She thought there was a market boom, so instead of reporting it, probably to give information, tell the Baale or any of the teachers that there are some certain people who come here to buy, she thought maybe it was her business that was booming.”
According to him, it was later discovered that the individuals were gathering intelligence ahead of the attack.
“Unfortunately, it turned out that those people were doing what they call surveillance, so when they struck two days later, they realised the people buying beans and bread worth N10,000, N15,000, this is their intention. At times, information is also very vital,” he said.
The Oyo school abductions occurred on the same day suspected Boko Haram militants reportedly attacked Mussa community in Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, abducting 42 schoolchildren and residents in a raid that reignited concerns over the safety of schools across Nigeria.
The twin incidents have triggered renewed calls from parents, teachers and civil society groups for stronger security measures, improved intelligence gathering and urgent reforms to protect schools from attacks and kidnappings.
