One of the teachers rescued after spending 56 days in captivity following the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oyo State has claimed that the kidnappers released them before security operatives eventually escorted them to safety.
The teacher, Zacchaeus Olatunde, made the revelation during a telephone interview with Nigeria Info FM, where he gave a detailed account of the traumatic experience endured by the victims after they were kidnapped from schools in Oriire Local Government Area.
According to Olatunde, the captives were blindfolded throughout their stay, making it impossible to determine where they were being held.
“We did not know whether we were still in Nigeria or another country. We were completely cut off and even feared the government had forgotten about us,” he said.
He disclosed that the abductors spoke Hausa, Nupe, Yoruba and English and identified themselves as members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), insisting they were not Boko Haram fighters.
Despite the uncertainty, Olatunde said the victims never lost hope, believing that prayers offered on their behalf would eventually secure their freedom.
He described the conditions in captivity as harsh but said the kidnappers provided food twice daily, consisting mainly of rice, beans, onions, margarine and salt.
However, the captives were forbidden from bathing or washing their clothes throughout the 56-day ordeal.
The teacher also revealed that the abductors initially prohibited them from praying.
After about a month, they permitted prayers but warned them not to mention the name of Jesus or pray aloud.
According to him, their release came unexpectedly when the kidnappers’ commander informed them they had regained their freedom and ordered them to remove their blindfolds.
Olatunde said he was the last to leave because the key to his handcuffs had broken.
After unsuccessfully trying to remove the cuffs, one kidnapper allegedly suggested cutting off his hand, but another rejected the idea before eventually freeing him with a rope.
He recalled a tense moment when the commander called him back at gunpoint after he had begun following the others, only to redirect him to the correct escape route.
The freed victims reportedly trekked for nearly an hour before the kidnappers provided motorcycles that transported them closer to a nearby village.
They then continued on foot until they encountered security personnel.
Olatunde admitted that the group initially feared the soldiers because they were speaking Hausa and arrived in buses without number plates, prompting the victims to request proof of identity before agreeing to follow them.
During the difficult journey, the teacher said he assisted younger pupils, carrying a little girl on his shoulders and helping several children and adults cross rivers safely.
He also recounted how arthritis prevented him from escaping during the attack on the school.
Although he attempted to hide in nearby grass, one of the pupils who refused to abandon him inadvertently exposed his location to the kidnappers.
Ironically, Olatunde said medication given to him by the kidnappers eased the arthritis that had troubled him for years.
Despite surviving the ordeal, he lamented that he had yet to receive any financial assistance from the authorities, adding that his greatest concern remained the welfare of his school.
The teachers and pupils were abducted in May after armed men stormed schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
Following their release, Governor Seyi Makinde confirmed that the victims had regained their freedom after 56 days in captivity.
He subsequently called for a United Nations-backed investigation into the abduction, arguing that Nigerians deserved a full account of what transpired.
However, the Presidency, through the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, faulted the governor’s position, maintaining that the military and other security agencies had already provided explanations regarding the rescue operation.
