The principal of Ahoro Esinle School in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, Mrs. Rachael Alamu, has addressed public curiosity over why she asked about her car immediately after regaining freedom from her abductors, saying she assumed security operatives had impounded the vehicle at a police station.
Alamu spoke on Monday when she and the other freed hostages, teachers, and pupils were formally handed over to Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde at the Governor’s Office in Ibadan, marking the official conclusion of a 56-day Oyo school abduction that shocked the country.
Her remarks came in response to widespread commentary about a question she raised shortly after rescue, when she inquired about the car she had been driving on the day gunmen stormed the school on Thursday in May 2026 and seized dozens of pupils and staff members.
What Alamu Said About the Burnt Vehicle
“What actually happened is I thought they left the car there. The police would have towed the car to their office,” she told journalists gathered at the handover event.
Alamu said someone showed her photographs of the vehicle at the location where it was set ablaze. She noted the spot did not match the route she and the other victims were taken during the abduction.
“That was not the path we took. So I thought, I think they drove it to that point before it was burned. That was not the way we took,” she said.
Her explanation drew sympathy from those present. The principal was among the senior staff members abducted alongside pupils from the Oriire LGA school, and her vehicle was destroyed by the gunmen during or after the operation.
Oyo School Abduction Principal Uncertain About Career Future
Alamu was also asked whether the ordeal in captivity would alter her decision to continue teaching. She did not give a definitive answer but acknowledged the difficulty of resuming work under the same conditions.
“With time, I’ve worked for 28 years, so I have four years. With time, maybe I can get over it. But going that far, the distance to that place is far already. So I sacrifice a lot when it comes to transportation. Now coupled with this, I don’t know what will happen,” she said.
The comment pointed to the daily logistical burden she already carried before the abduction, which the trauma of captivity has now compounded significantly.
Earlier on Monday, Alamu gave an account of the conditions the hostages endured during their 56 days in captivity. She said children were beaten to keep them quiet. Male teachers were chained and blindfolded. The captors repeatedly forced all the victims to trek through forest terrain at night to avoid detection by security forces who were searching for them.
Rescue, Medical Care, and Formal Handover
The federal government announced the rescue of the victims on Friday after security agencies concluded the operation. Following the announcement, the freed hostages were transferred to the Military Hospital in Ibadan, where they received medical treatment and psychosocial support before the formal handover on Monday.
Governor Makinde received the returning victims at the Secretariat in Ibadan. Details of remarks made at the handover ceremony by the governor’s office were not immediately available in full, but the event marked the formal return of the hostages to state authority after weeks of coordinated security efforts.
The abduction at Ahoro Esinle School in Oriire LGA had triggered national concern and pressure on federal and state security agencies to act. The operation that secured the release involved military and police personnel, and the Senate has since identified soldiers and a police officer who sustained injuries during the rescue.
Alamu’s account is the most detailed testimony yet from a survivor of the Oyo school abduction. The teachers and pupils spent more than seven weeks in the custody of gunmen operating in forested terrain before security operatives located and freed them.
The National Orientation Agency and Oyo State government have not issued a joint statement on trauma support for the victims beyond the initial medical referral to the military hospital. Further information on rehabilitation plans was not immediately disclosed.
