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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Abductors of five pupils and four staff of Apostolic Faith Group of Schools, Emure Ekiti, have demanded N100 million ransom for the release of the nine victims.
The principal of the secondary section of the school, Boje Olanireti, disclosed while speaking to newsmen, on Tuesday.
The abduction of the schoolchildren and four staff members occurred when the school bus conveying 25 pupils home after school hours was ambushed by the gunmen in Emure community, Ekiti State, on Monday.
Shedding light on how the incident happened, Olanireti explained that the abduction took place about five-minute drive from the school.
“Immediately the school closed at 3pm, and by the time we gathered all the children, it was already 3:30pm. It was that time that they moved. So, the incident happened between 3:30pm and 4pm. The school is in a suburb of Emure village, so they were going back home in Eporo. The incident occurred just about a five-minute drive from the school to Eporo.
“When the gunmen attacked, the people around heard the gunshots and they came to Emure with motorcycles to inform the people in the school about what happened. We immediately reported to the police station at Emure.
“The students were over 25 on the bus when the incident happened. When the gunmen attacked them, they shot the tyre of the vehicle and asked the children to come out of the bus. They asked all of them to lie down. They picked five students and four staff members. After that, they asked others to go,”she said.
Olanireti added: “The five students comprise two from the secondary (school) and three from primary school while the four staff comprise two teachers, one driver and one bus assistant.
“When the parents heard about the incident, they came from Eporo and they have been making frantic efforts by reaching out to some security outfits, including the police and Amotekun.
“The security operatives have also been talking to the proprietor of the primary school and he has been giving them information. By the time they opened communication, they first called the husband of one of the teachers and demanded N10m for each kidnapped victim. But when they later called the headmaster, they demanded N100m for all of them.”
A family of one of the victims who spoke with newsmen on condition of anonymity in Eporo Ekiti on Tuesday, confirmed that the kidnappers had contacted the family, demanding N100 million ransom for the victims.
“They called the family of one of the school children and they are requesting N10 million per victim. What we gathered is that there are nine persons kidnapped – five schoolchildren, two teachers, one bus assistant and a driver.
“The parents are at Eporo. The bus was taking them home after closing. It was in the process that the kidnappers struck. None of the families of the abductees can afford the ransom,’’ the family member said.
Meanwhile, the Aremo of Emure Kingdom, Chief Clement Akinola, has appealed to the state government to assist in securing the release of the children.
Akinola, who was accompanied by Emure Local Government Chairman and state government officials, spoke during a visit to the families of the kidnapped persons at Eporo Ekiti.
He said: “One can imagine the condition the children will be in, one can imagine the state of mind of the parents, the entire Emure community and the Eporo people. There is tension, very high tension.’’
Akinola called for the establishment of military posts at the many borders between Emure community and Ondo State to curb kidnappings and the activities of gunmen in the area.
“Emure is a border town, we have a boundary with Ondo State at Owo through Eporo, we have a boundary with Ondo State through Supare Akoko, and we have some farm roads pliable by motorbikes to Ondo State at Uso.
“My appeal is that there should be military checkpoints between Emure and Owo and Eporo as well as around Supare. These will reduce the violent crimes in the areas,” he added.
The chairman of the Joint Security Committee of Ise, Emure and Ikere communities, Tunji Falana, who corroborated Akinola’s statement, said: “The boundaries are too porous. We have been appealing to the government to establish police posts and army checkpoints at the borders.
“This is not the first time kidnappers would kidnap there. The place is porous. But in this kidnap case, the Kabiyesi, the Elemure of Emure Ekiti, Oba Emmanuel Adebayo, a former commissioner of police, is working round the clock to ensure the release of the abductees.”
He continued: “Bush combing should be at regular intervals, not more than two weeks interval. When the kidnappers realise the forests are free, they return especially during dry seasons like this when there is North-South migration.
“They destroy our farms at Ise Ekiti and Emure Ekiti here and nobody can control them. We commend the police because they are making arrests and taking them for prosecution.”
The abduction of the schoolchildren occurred same day gunmen killed two monarchs–the Onimojo of Imojo, Oba Olatunde Olusola, and the Elesun of Esun Ekiti, Oba Babatunde Ogunsakin, around Ipao Ekiti, on Monday.