The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, has explained why security agencies waited 56 days before rescuing abducted pupils and teachers in Oyo State.
Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday, Disu said security operatives deliberately withheld information about the rescue mission despite intense public criticism, stating that any rushed operation could have endangered the lives of the victims.
The IGP said the terrain where the abduction occurred posed significant operational challenges, noting that the area was remote, with poor telecommunications coverage and limited security presence.
He explained that the affected communities were connected by only one access road, making the rescue effort more difficult.
“In that area, there is no network at all. Even the nearest police station is far away. There is only one road leading to the two villages where the kidnapping happened,” he said.
Disu disclosed that police officers, soldiers and local vigilantes immediately launched a search operation, disclosing that one security operative lost his life while pursuing the kidnappers.
“Policemen came, soldiers came, vigilantes came. They followed the kidnappers’ trail. Somebody was shot as we were following them. Nobody mentioned that. Nobody saw the effort we put in,” he said.
He disclosed that the operation also involved sustained aerial surveillance, with helicopters from both the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigerian Air Force conducting round-the-clock searches.
According to the IGP, security agencies intentionally avoided giving regular updates to the public because doing so could have compromised the mission and exposed the hostages to greater danger.
“Everybody was attacking us from left and right. They wanted us to speak, but we could not expose those children. There is something called collateral damage. People wanted us to take hasty decisions because they were comparing us with other countries,” he said.
Disu revealed that senior security officials held late-night strategy meetings throughout the operation as they weighed difficult decisions under growing public pressure.
He added that details of the rescue mission were kept confidential, even within parts of the security architecture, to preserve operational secrecy.
“Most of this, we did not even tell many of our colleagues because we wanted to keep it secret. There were events we could not attend and many things we could not talk about,” he said.
NPO Reports recalls that the victims were abducted by terrorists in May 2026 after an attack on two schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State
They were rescued on the 10th of July, making it 56 days in kidnappers’ custody.