Stop kidnappings, protect our children now, NLC tells FG

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has lamented the increasing kidnapping of Nigerian children and called on the federal government and security agencies to be alive to their duties and protect innocent children.

In a statement on Wednesday, signed by the NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, the labour movement said: “For too long we have watched our schools become hunting grounds. This is not just an attack on families; it is an assault on the future of our nation.”

NLC noted with dismay that about a week ago, armed gangs abducted an estimated 39 pupils and seven teachers from Community High School and L.A. Basic School, Ahoro Esinele, and First Baptist School (Nursery and Primary), Yawota, in Oriire Local Government, Oyo State.

It said: “At first many treated it as another grim headline — a weary shrug. That reaction reflects how deeply our sense of humanity has been eroded and how resigned we have become to this new, terrifying normal.

What makes Ahoro Esinele and Yawota unbearable is the profile of the victims — little children — and the brutality recorded during captivity, including the murder of a teacher.

“When criminals film themselves torturing the innocent and post it as spectacle, they are broadcasting their power and daring the state to respond,” Comrade Ajaero added.

According to the statement: “Security forces and local vigilantes pursued the kidnappers immediately, but were repelled by improvised explosive devices and the use of children as human shields.

“This exposes a chilling weakness: we have lost the kinetic deterrence and extraction capabilities necessary to save lives in these circumstances. Worse still, if the state cannot protect communities, citizens may increasingly turn to bandits for security — a catastrophic shift in loyalty and an implicit vote of no confidence in our institutions.

“There is another grim truth: nowhere is safe anymore. What were once distant stories of abduction have moved to rural schools and now threaten our towns and cities. It is only a matter of time before such atrocities become commonplace in urban daylight.

“This moment demands a candid national conversation and an urgent change of strategy. The fight against terrorism must move from being mismanaged or monetized to being focused solely on survival and the protection of citizens. Government at all levels must wake up. Security agencies should undertake a frank soul-searching and rapidly fix gaps in capability, intelligence, and rapid-response extraction.

“We can no longer accept platitudes,” Comrade Ajaero said. “We demand decisive action — not prayers,

not condolences — but results that protect our children and restore confidence in the state.”

“We call on federal, state, and local authorities to:
“Conduct an immediate, well-resourced rescue operation with clear public updates.
Strengthen intelligence-sharing, bomb-response units, and rapid extraction teams.
Protect schools with visible, trained security and community-backed protection measures.

“End the leak of ransom culture by refusing to negotiate publicly and prosecuting financiers who enable kidnappings.
Enough blood has been shed. Address this security challenge now, before our nation’s future is irreparably harmed.

The post Stop kidnappings, protect our children now, NLC tells FG appeared first on Vanguard News.