The media adviser to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Mr Paul Ibe, has called on the Department of State Services and other security agencies to invite Yoruba nation campaigner, Sunday Igboho, to disclose the identities of the politicians he claims are sponsoring the kidnappers responsible for abducting students and teachers in Oyo State.
Mr Ibe made the call on Thursday in a post on X, arguing that security agencies should take advantage of any credible information capable of helping efforts to rescue the victims and dismantle the criminal networks behind the attacks.
His intervention followed recent comments by Igboho during a meeting with members of the National Association of Nigerian Students, in which the activist claimed he knew the politicians allegedly backing kidnappers operating in parts of the South-West.
The remarks were made against the backdrop of concerns over the abduction of students and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State – a development that has renewed fears that kidnapping and insecurity are spreading into communities traditionally considered safer than some of the country’s conflict-prone regions.
Reacting to Igboho’s claims, Mr Ibe said security agencies should engage him immediately if he genuinely possesses information that could assist ongoing investigations.
“Since Sunday Igboho claims to know those behind the abduction of students and teachers in Oriire, Oyo State, I think that the State Security Service and other security agencies ought to invite him to release those names to them. Every option should be on the table to fast-track the safe release of the schoolchildren and teachers.”
Mr Ibe also broadened the conversation to address the wider security challenges confronting the country, questioning what he described as the Federal Government’s muted response to the reported abduction of more than 50 schoolchildren in Mussa, Borno State, on 15 May 2026.
Drawing a comparison between the official response to the incidents in Oyo and Borno, he asked: “By the way, who knows those behind the abduction of over 50 schoolchildren in Mussa, Borno State on 15 May 2026? Why is Tinubu and his government mute over the Borno abduction? Are those schoolchildren not Nigerians? When will the Commander-in-Chief and Consoler-in-Chief send a delegation to Mussa as it did in the case of Oriire? When will Borno and other vulnerable states get their own forest guards? Why wait for a tragedy to occur before the Tinubu government takes action to stem insecurity in our country?”
Igboho had told his visitors that the kidnappers were not invincible and could be dislodged if decisive action were taken against them. “If I am permitted to burst into their hideouts, they will flee. They are neither gnomes nor mannequins; they are humans, so they can be dislodged. I know the politicians behind them, and if they do not stop perpetrating their evil acts, I will mention them all. I know them. The politicians behind them are the ones giving them ammunition and money,” he said.
The latest exchange has once again drawn national attention to the issue of school safety and the persistent threat posed by kidnapping gangs across different parts of the country. Over the past decade, Nigeria has witnessed a series of mass abductions targeting schools, particularly in northern states, prompting repeated calls for stronger intelligence gathering, improved community policing and enhanced protection for vulnerable communities.
Whilst security agencies have yet to respond publicly to either Igboho’s allegations or Mr Ibe’s call, the comments are likely to intensify pressure on the authorities to investigate claims of political sponsorship of criminal groups and to secure the release of victims still in captivity.
The allegations also underscore growing concerns over the intersection of politics, criminality and insecurity – an issue that has remained at the centre of national debate as Nigeria continues to grapple with kidnapping, banditry and other violent crimes across several regions.
