Oyo school abduction happened hours after my presidential declaration — Makinde

 Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has said the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area occurred just hours after he declared his intention to contest the 2027 presidential election, describing the timing as unprecedented during his administration.

Makinde made the remark on Friday while addressing a meeting with Bala Mohammed and leaders of the Allied Peoples Movement in Bauchi. He recalled that Oyo State had not experienced a similar incident in the seven years he had been in office before the May 15 attack.

“For seven years, we didn’t witness anything like this in Oyo State. I declared to run for the presidency of Nigeria at four o’clock, and by 9 a.m. the following morning, the children were abducted,” Makinde said.

Hours after the governor’s remarks, the Presidency announced the rescue of all the abducted pupils and teachers after 56 days in captivity.

According to the Presidency, the victims were freed during a joint operation involving the military, the Department of State Services (DSS) and the police. Eight suspected kidnappers were arrested and are currently in DSS custody, while several others were neutralised during the operation.

The Presidency also disclosed that the victims were rescued without any negotiation or prisoner exchange, despite the kidnappers’ demand for the release of one of their detained leaders who is currently facing prosecution.

Reacting to the development, Makinde expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the military, the police, the DSS and other security agencies for securing the release of the victims.

He described the successful operation as a major relief for the affected families and the people of Oyo State, saying it ended weeks of anxiety following the abduction of pupils and teachers from three schools in Oriire Local Government Area.

President Tinubu also commended the security agencies for rescuing the victims without collateral damage and directed relevant emergency agencies to work with the Oyo State Government to provide medical care and other support for the rescued pupils and teachers.

Makinde formally declared his presidential ambition on May 14 at a joint rally of the Peoples Democratic Party and the Allied Peoples Movement in Ibadan, where he pledged to “reset Nigeria.” He later emerged as the Allied Peoples Movement’s presidential candidate after being adopted as the party’s consensus candidate.

JUST IN: Kidnapped Pupils, Teachers in Orire Regain Freedom

The abducted pupils and teachers in Orire Local Government Area of Oyo State have regained their freedom.

The was disclosed in a video shared by by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga on Friday.

According to the Onanuga, the victims were released by their abductors.

“Finally, the kidnapped pupils and teachers in Orire, Oyo have been freed by their abductors,” he wrote.

Details later.

Oyo 2027: Ex-Minister Adelabu’s supporters protest in Ibadan

Members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, including supporters of former Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, on Thursday staged a protest in Ibadan, demanding the release of the party’s primary election results, particularly those of the governorship primary.

The protesters called on the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC to release the results, saying the move was necessary to safeguard the party’s future ahead of the 2027 general election.

Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Our Votes, Our Right: Release Our Primary Results,” “We Need Primary Election Results,” “Say No to Imposition and Manipulation,” “We Demand Primary Results,” “Credible Process Builds a Stronger Party,” and “Democracy, Not Dictatorship,” the demonstrators marched through parts of Ibadan, including Molete and the APC secretariat at Oke-Ado.

Speaking to journalists during the protest, one of the demonstrators, Hajia Bello Bolanle, said the reconciliation committee recently constituted by the party would only achieve meaningful results if members were allowed to see the outcome of the primaries.

She said the protesters were simply demanding transparency from the party’s leadership, warning that the imposition of candidates could undermine the APC’s chances in the 2027 elections in Oyo State.

Bolanle appealed to the party’s national leadership to release the results of all the primary elections, including the governorship primary, in the interest of fairness and internal democracy.

“We appealed to the President an the NWC to release the results. We are here just because of the primary election that we did in Oyo state, the national body of the party are yet to released the results.

“The presidential election that we did after that, the results have been released. They should release our results in Oyo state. We don’t want imposition. They should release it and whatever may be the outcome, we will take it.”

Also, Bolarinwa Zebora said, “We are beseeching the National Working Committee to tell us where we are going in Oyo state because they have the constitutional right to tell us the voice of the people.

“The people’s voice in the Oyo State is determined by the primary election, not consensus. Because what we could see now is the consensus.

“Because if it were a primary election, we should have seen results. There is no way you will send your children to school without a result, and the teacher will tell you that he has been promoted.

“We are beseeching the chairman of the National, APC National Chairman, and the National Working Committee of the National, to please and please to avail the results of the state. Let us see the results.

“Please and please. This is not the right way of doing it. If they want consensus, they should give us consensus. We should know that this is consensus. We did primary election. Where is the result? how will you in a developed country, your say someone promoted without a result? What is the meaning of reconciliation? Reconciliation comes after primary election.

“After primary election result, where is the primary election result? Why are they constituting the reconciliation committee.”

Meanwhile, no party officials on ground to addressed the protesters, as gate of Oyo APC party office is locked and maned by security operatives to prevent breakdown of law and order.

DJ Chicken over video on Seyi Tinubu — Lawyer raises alarm

Rotimi Stephen, the lawyer of a Controversial Disc Jockey and TikTok personality, Ademola Abiodun, popularly known as DJ Chicken, has alleged that the controversial comedian has been arrested and is currently in custody.

In a video posted on his Instagram page on Thursday, Stephen claimed that DJ Chicken was apprehended in Ikeja and taken to the police headquarters.

The lawyer believed that officials of the Department of State Services may also be involved in the matter, alleging that the arrest is connected to a video DJ Chicken recently shared in which he made remarks about the President’s son.

He stated, “So, Dj Chicken is now with the authorities. He was arrested at Ikeja and he is now at Ikeja Police headquarters but I am very sure it is the DSS. He was arrested in connection with the sttement he made some days ago about the son of the president, Seyi Tinubu.”

He appealed to the comedian’s supporters and anyone with access to the Presidency to intervene and help secure his release, noting that the video believed to have triggered the incident was already in the public domain.

Stephen described the comedian as someone he had personally mentored and supported over the years as part of his commitment to helping young people.

He pleaded, “Please, fans and well wishers please. People that like Chicken and people that are close with the presidency please forgive Chicken. He is not that okay. We are just managing him. Chicken is my own personal project. It is my own part of giving back to the society.

“I just picked interest in him as a criminal lawyer. We are just managing him and he knows. He is still part of the society. We are begging please. Government should please forgive him. We will do everything.”

Expressing frustration over the development, the lawyer said he was uncertain about how to proceed.

“I don’t know what to do again. They should please,” he said.

DJ Chicken, who is known for his outspoken and often controversial social media content, recently shared a video containing comments about the President’s son.

In the video, he stated in Yoruba, “Tinubu, you can’t win the election. If you win, I will kill Seyi Tinubu. I won’t say more than that.”

The clip quickly gained widespread attention online.

Meanwhile, at the time of filing this report, there has been no official confirmation from the Nigeria Police Force or the Department of State Services regarding the alleged arrest or the reason for the comedian’s detention.

How Ondo female student was forced into sex-for-grades by HOD — NANS

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has alleged that a female student in a tertiary institution in Ondo State was compelled into a sex-for-grades arrangement by her Head of Department (HOD) after she repeatedly failed a compulsory course required for graduation.

NANS President, Akinteye Babatunde, made the allegation in a statement issued on Friday and titled, “Our Female Students Deserve Safety, Dignity, and Justice.”

Akinteye said the student had only one outstanding course left before graduation and returned to the school to retake the examination.

He said after she was told that she had failed the course again, she approached the lecturer in charge of it, who was also the Head of Department, to find out why she could not pass.

According to the NANS president, the student alleged that the lecturer told her she could never pass the course and later demanded sex in exchange for a passing grade.

“She further alleged that, after several encounters, the lecturer demanded that she perform a sexual act on him in his office in exchange for a passing grade,” the statement partly read

Akinteye said the student claimed she felt cornered and believed she had no other way of graduating.

“Feeling trapped and believing she had no other option if she wanted to graduate, she said she complied and she gave him BLOW JOB as demanded by him,” he stated.

He said the student thought the matter had ended after the incident, but alleged that the lecturer contacted her again about a week later.

Akinteye alleged that the lecturer kept calling the student and asking her to come to his residence, suggesting that she would have to continue the sexual relationship before she could be cleared.

“Disturbed and afraid, she reached out to me for help,” Akinteye said.

The NANS president said he had planned to take the matter public at first, but the student begged him not to because she feared victimisation and only wanted to complete her graduation without further harassment.

He said he then reached out to the appropriate authorities in the institution and was informed within three hours that the student had been cleared.

“While I am relieved that she was able to complete her academic process, I am deeply saddened that she was too afraid to publicly identify herself or the lecturer involved.

“This reflects the fear, intimidation and stigma that many female students face when confronted with sexual harassment,” he said.

Akinteye said the incident highlights a broader pattern of sexual exploitation in tertiary institutions, stressing that many cases go unreported because victims fear retaliation, shame and victimisation.

“No student should ever be forced to exchange sexual favours for academic success. Our campuses must be places of learning, not environments where students are exploited by those entrusted with their education,” he added.

He urged female students facing sexual harassment, intimidation or exploitation to report such cases to the National Director of Gender of NANS, assuring them that such complaints would be treated professionally and confidentially.

“We are committed to handling such complaints professionally, confidentially, and with the seriousness they deserve. Together, we must build campuses where every student can pursue an education free from fear, harassment, and abuse,” he said.

Akinteye, however, did not name the institution, the lecturer or the student involved.