RESCUED OYO PUPIL RECOUNTS ORDEAL IN CAPTIVITY, SAYS ABDUCTORS BEAT VICTIMS, FED THEM GARRI WITHOUT SUGAR
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
A family member of one of the pupils rescued after spending nearly two months in captivity following the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State has narrated the child’s harrowing experience, alleging that the abductors beat the victims whenever they asked about their families and fed them only garri without sugar.
The account was shared during an interview with TVC News on Wednesday.
According to the relative, the child, identified as Taiwo, has continued to recount the traumatic ordeal since returning home, revealing that the abductors subjected the captives to physical abuse and denied them proper meals throughout their stay in the forest.
“When he saw you people (journalists), he started clinging to us. They really stressed them in the forest. He has been narrating it to us. He said they beat him whenever he remembered us,” the relative said.
The family member added that the child disclosed that the victims survived largely on garri without sugar while in captivity.
“When we asked him what they gave them to eat, he said they usually gave them garri without sugar,” the relative added.
Another member of the family also described the child’s fearful reaction upon seeing unfamiliar faces after the rescue.
“As soon as she saw you from afar, she clung to us,” one relative said, while another added that the child became frightened and almost fled.
“She wanted to start running into the bush. She was shaking,” the relative said.
Another family member said the rescued child had continued to describe how the abductors punished the victims whenever they requested to see their loved ones.
“They put them through a lot of suffering. She has been recounting her experience with the abductors to us since. She said that whenever she asked for her relatives, they would beat her,” the relative stated.
The latest account comes days after all the pupils and teachers abducted during the May 15 attack on schools in Oriire Local Government Area regained their freedom following a coordinated rescue operation by security agencies.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, announced the rescue on Friday through his verified X handle.
The family’s revelation also follows the account of the Principal of Community High School, Mrs. Rachael Alamu, who was among those rescued. She disclosed that the victims spent 56 days in captivity, during which younger children were repeatedly beaten whenever they cried, had pieces of cloth tied over their mouths to silence them, and were forced alongside teachers to undertake dangerous night-time treks through forests to evade security operatives.
Alamu further revealed that while the female victims were spared physical assault, the male teachers were blindfolded, handcuffed and kept in chains throughout their captivity.
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