Oyo School Kidnapping: Perpetrators Want to Speak with Government, Not Families – Says Alamu, Principal’s Husband

By Adeola Badru

IBADAN — More than two weeks after Mrs. Rachael Alamu, the principal of Community High School in Ahoro-Esinle, Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, was abducted, her husband, Professor Wole Alamu, says the kidnappers are refusing to negotiate with the family and insist on dealing only with the government.

Professor Alamu, a lecturer in the Department of Forest Resources Management at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Iseyin Campus, revealed this in an interview with Vanguard.

He said the kidnappers have been communicating through WhatsApp messages but have declined to engage family members in any form of negotiation.

“The captors said they don’t want to talk to us. They only want to talk to the government, and that is why we are helpless. Anytime they want to communicate, they send messages to me through WhatsApp,” he said.

Mrs. Alamu was taken during a violent attack on the school on May 15, during which some teachers were reportedly killed while students and staff members were abducted. Professor Alamu recalled receiving a distress call shortly after he and his wife left home for work that morning.

“Each time I go to Iseyin, my wife goes to Esele as principal of the school. That morning, after we both left home, I received a call around 9:20 a.m. informing me that she had been kidnapped. I rushed back and discovered that some teachers had been killed while many students and teachers were abducted. The Toyota Corolla she used for transportation was also burnt,” he said.

He added that since the incident, the family has not spoken directly with her, except for videos allegedly recorded under duress by the kidnappers.

“Since May 15, we have not heard from her apart from the videos she was forced to produce by the captors,” he said.

Professor Alamu praised the Oyo State Government for its support since the incident.

“We thank the Executive Governor of Oyo State for standing by us. He has not abandoned us in this difficult period,” he stated.

He said the WhatsApp messages sent by the kidnappers had been forwarded to security agencies for investigation.

“I believe the DSS are working on it,” he added.

The professor expressed confusion over why his wife became a target, describing her as a dedicated educationist committed to developing the community.

“My wife did not offend anyone. She only came to contribute to the development of the area,” he said.

According to him, Mrs. Alamu had been traveling about 62 kilometres daily to the school since her deployment in August 2024, a commitment he fully supported despite the challenges and cost of transportation.

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