Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the abduction of schoolchildren and educators in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, as well as the killing of several residents in Katsina State, describing the incidents as evidence of what he called a “collapse of leadership” under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku expressed grief over the reported killing of one of the teachers kidnapped during the Ogbomoso incident, warning that worsening insecurity across the country had exposed deep cracks in the nation’s security framework.
“At a time when armed criminals are abducting schoolchildren, slaughtering innocent citizens, and turning communities into graveyards, President Tinubu’s response remains the same tired ritual: condemn the killings, threaten that the perpetrators will face the ‘full wrath of the law,’ and then wait for the next massacre,” the statement read.
“Nigerians have heard this script too many times. It has become painfully predictable and utterly meaningless.
“President Tinubu must stop governing by obituary statements.
“Enough of the recycled outrage. Enough of the empty threats. Nigerians are dying, and this government keeps responding with press releases.”
The former vice president said the recurring attacks on schools and communities across the country had emboldened criminal groups who now operate “with terrifying confidence.”
“A President who only finds his voice after blood has been spilt is not leading but presiding over failure,” Atiku stated.
“The horrifying abduction in Ogbomoso and the gruesome killings in Katsina are not isolated incidents. They are part of a grim national pattern in which criminals operate with terrifying confidence because they no longer fear the Nigerian state.
“When terrorists can invade schools, abduct children and teachers, butcher pregnant women, sack entire communities, and disappear without consequence, it is because the authority of the state has collapsed.”
Nigeria has in recent years witnessed a resurgence of kidnappings, bandit attacks and mass killings, particularly in parts of the North-West and North-Central regions, despite repeated assurances by the Federal Government that security agencies are making progress against criminal elements.
The Ogbomoso abduction has further heightened concerns over the safety of schools, reviving memories of previous mass kidnappings of students in states such as Kaduna, Zamfara and Niger. In Katsina State, communities have continued to grapple with attacks by armed groups, with residents frequently reporting killings, kidnappings and destruction of property.
Atiku questioned the repeated use of official statements following violent attacks, arguing that condolences without decisive action had failed to reassure Nigerians.
“What comfort is ‘the full wrath of the law’ to families already burying their loved ones? What solace is another presidential statement to parents now terrified that sending their children to school may be a death sentence?” he asked.
The Turakin Adamawa also raised concerns over alleged attempts to suppress graphic evidence of attacks from circulating in the public space.
“Even more disturbing are reports suggesting deliberate attempts to suppress images and documentation of these atrocities from reaching the Nigerian public.
“If this government is indeed more interested in censoring evidence of mass killings than in preventing the killings themselves, then that is not merely incompetence — it is cruelty of the highest order.
“No serious government hides the blood of its citizens to protect political optics.”
He added that the inability of the government to guarantee security while allegedly attempting to control narratives surrounding the attacks amounted to a deeper moral crisis.
“A government that cannot protect the living but seeks to censor evidence of their deaths has lost every moral right to govern.
“This is no longer just a security failure. It is a moral failure. A leadership failure. A national disgrace.
“Nigerians deserve more than performative outrage and ceremonial condolences. They deserve a government that can protect lives, defend communities, and act before tragedy strikes — not one that merely reacts after the damage is done,” he added.
Atiku called for the immediate rescue of all abducted victims in Oyo State, stronger security operations in vulnerable communities, and a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s security architecture.
Read the full article here
