A teacher released after spending 56 days in captivity following the mass abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State has described the dramatic circumstances surrounding their release, saying it came unexpectedly after the militants’ commander announced they were free.
Speaking during a live interview on 99.3 Nigeria Info FM, school counsellor Mr Olatunde Zachaeus said the militants’ leader appeared unusually cheerful before ordering that the blindfolds and handcuffs of the captives be removed.
“The way we were freed was miraculous. One day, their commander came and they were just laughing and smiling. They said we should thank God that we had been freed,” Zachaeus said.
He explained that while the other captives ran ahead, his own handcuff could not be unlocked because the key had broken. One militant reportedly suggested cutting off his hands before another eventually succeeded in opening the lock.
According to Zachaeus, the commander later called him back, pointed a gun at him and redirected him along a different route before escorting him for nearly an hour through the forest. The group eventually reached motorcycles that transported them to a nearby village, where they continued their journey on foot.
The former hostage recalled crossing two rivers during the trek, carrying children and elderly captives across the flooded waters. He also rescued a young child who slipped into one of the rivers.
Their ordeal continued even after leaving the forest, as they initially feared the security officials sent to receive them were another group of kidnappers.
Zachaeus said the rescue team arrived in a tinted bus without number plates and spoke Hausa, triggering panic among the released captives, who feared they were being taken away again.
Only after speaking by telephone with officials in English and Yoruba were they convinced they had genuinely been rescued and were eventually taken back to their school before returning to Ibadan.
Reflecting on the 56 days in captivity, Zachaeus said the adult male captives remained blindfolded and chained throughout the ordeal, surviving on only two meagre meals each day.
He also recounted the deaths of Vice Principal Michael Oyedokun and teacher John Olaleye, alleging that the militants accused Oyedokun of concealing a mobile phone while Olaleye was killed to send a warning to security forces.
The teacher said the militants insisted they were neither bandits nor Boko Haram, but identified themselves as members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
According to him, the captives were initially forbidden from mentioning the name of Jesus or praying aloud, although the militants later allowed them to pray silently when situations became difficult.
