Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has imposed a 16-hour curfew in 10 Local Government Areas, effective from Wednesday, according to a memo issued in Ibadan by Secretary to the State Government, Professor Musibau Babatunde. The curfew will run from 4.00 p.m. to 8.00 a.m. and is initially set for two days. The affected LGAs are Oriire, Orelope, Irepo, Saki West, Saki East, Atisbo, Itesiwaju, Iseyin, Olorunsogo, and Atiba. All share borders with the Old Oyo National Park, where over 40 students and teachers from Oriire Local Government Area were abducted on May 15. Those abducted remain missing. The Oyo State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has called an indefinite strike beginning June 1, affecting all public primary and secondary schools in the state. Security agencies and the Oyo government have maintained that efforts to rescue the abductees are ongoing. Makinde, speaking to protesters in Ibadan on June 16, 2026, reiterated his commitment to securing their release, stating, "If you ask me, 'Can I sacrifice myself for those children to come out?' I will do it." He added that tougher decisions, including sacrificing lives, would not be ruled out, though operational details were withheld for security reasons.
Seyi Makinde declared a curfew in 10 LGAs while the students abducted on May 15 remain missing. His public pledge to sacrifice himself contrasts with the prolonged failure to secure their release. Parents and teachers face ongoing uncertainty as schools remain closed indefinitely. The state's security response has yet to yield results nearly a month after the abduction.
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