Five Things to Know About Nigeria’s School Kidnapping Protests

Public schools across southwestern Oyo State have fallen silent after teachers walked out of classrooms, launching an indefinite strike to protest a string of daring school abductions.

The industrial action has fuelled nationwide solidarity rallies, with educators warning that the country’s education ecosystem is fast becoming a casualty of rampant insecurity.

The crisis escalated dramatically when the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) directed all public primary and secondary school teachers in Oyo State to withdraw their services. According to reports, the strike was triggered by the prolonged captivity of pupils and educators, which the union warns has plunged communities into unprecedented fear and anxiety.

The development followed a high-powered federal delegation visit to the affected communities, led by Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, and Defense Minister Christopher Musa, where President Bola Tinubu approved the deployment of a specialised rescue unit and the recruitment of 1,000 forest guards to secure the region.

Here are five things to know about the spreading unrest and the teachers’ strike.

1. What triggered the latest crisis?

The current wave of outrage was sparked by simultaneous mass abductions on May 15. In southwestern Oyo State—a region historically considered much calmer than the volatile north—gunmen invaded three schools in Oriire Local Government Area: Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, and L.A. Primary School. At least 46 pupils and staff were seized, and one teacher was killed during the assault.

The very same day, at least 42 more victims—including toddlers as young as two years old—were snatched from their classrooms in northeastern Borno State. The coordinated nature of the raids has sent shockwaves through the educational sector, signalling that no region is entirely safe from school-targeted terrorism.

“Kidnapping has no place in education,” read a banner held by protesters in Oyo capital Ibadan, as an Afrobeats song critical of the government bellowed from the large speakers mounted on a van.

2. Who is driving the protests and industrial action?

The resistance is being led by a unified front of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), civil society groups, and joint labour unions. In Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, massive rallies shut down local streets as demonstrators carried placards reading “Every Life Matters, Stop the Kidnappers” and “Education is Under Siege.”

By Tuesday, June 2, the movement expanded well beyond Oyo. Mirroring the outrage, NUT chapters across the country—including heavyweights like Lagos, Kano, Plateau, and Taraba states—staged synchronised protest rallies, transforming a localised grievance into a nationwide demonstration against state insecurity.

In Lagos, meanwhile, protesters marched to the state house of assembly to demand the immediate release of the students.

“Education is under siege,” Hassan Taiwo of the Education Rights Campaign stated, denouncing an “epidemic of attacks on school and abduction of school children and teachers that we have experienced over the years.”

3. Why is this strike uniquely disruptive?

The timing of the strike has amplified its impact, severely crippling school calendars and threatening major academic milestones. Classrooms across Oyo State have been locked shut, forcing students who arrived for lessons to return home.

Crucially, the industrial action has severely disrupted the ongoing West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). With school supervisors and educators participating in the total withdrawal of services, thousands of students face immense uncertainty regarding their final secondary school papers, creating a high-stakes standoff between the labour unions and the state government.

Despite the chaos, leadership stresses that keeping the schools open without protection is no longer a viable option, though closing them permanently isn’t the goal either.

“We pray that our teachers and students are released,” Jessica Obong, spokeswoman for the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), said. But she dismissed calls by some for schools to be closed, insisting it would only play into the hands of the attackers.

4. How have the federal and state governments responded?

Faced with escalating protests, government officials have scrambled to de-escalate the tension. Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde visited the grieving families in Ogbomoso, pleading for patience and promising that his administration is exhausting all avenues to ensure a safe rescue.

On the national stage, the presidency has treated the situation as a major security flashpoint. Beyond deploying top military and intelligence chiefs to the affected local government areas, the federal government has promised residents that a permanent military base will be considered for the area to restore confidence to terrified parents and educators. Still, those on the ground feel the response requires more visible, immediate urgency.

“We want the government and security agencies to act swiftly and show the families that they have not been forgotten,” teacher Kaumi Usman told media in Maiduguri.

5. What is the broader historical context?

Mass school kidnappings have plagued Nigeria for over a decade, most infamously starting with Boko Haram’s 2014 abduction of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State. However, the crisis saw a vicious resurgence in the final quarter of 2025, marked by the mass kidnapping of 24 schoolgirls in Kebbi State in November and the seizure of roughly 300 students and several teachers in Niger State the same month.

While the government continues to combat jihadist insurgencies in the northeast and banditry in the northwest, the expansion of mass school raids into the southwest marks a dangerous new chapter. Activists and union leaders warn that unless security personnel are permanently attached to vulnerable public schools, a generation of children may be locked out of an education entirely due to fear.