By Stephen Simon
Thousands of teachers across Nigeria on Tuesday abandoned their classrooms and took to the streets in a rare nationwide protest against the growing wave of school abductions, as anguish deepened over the fate of pupils and teachers seized by gunmen in Oyo State.
The action, coordinated by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), brought learning activities to a standstill in many public schools, particularly in Oyo State where several schools remained shut and classrooms deserted.
For worried parents, frightened pupils and grieving families, the protest was more than an industrial action. It was a desperate cry for help from a sector increasingly under siege by criminal gangs who have turned schools into targets.
Teachers carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Schools Are Not Battlefields”, “Stop Kidnapping Our Children” and “Protect Teachers, Protect Education” marched through major cities, demanding the immediate rescue of abducted students and educators and stronger security around schools.
The protest follows the abduction of scores of pupils and teachers from schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State in an attack that has sent shockwaves across the country. Weeks after the incident, many families remain trapped in uncertainty, anxiously waiting for news about their loved ones.
Parents of the victims have described the ordeal as a nightmare.
Many have reportedly been forced to live between hope and despair, uncertain whether their children are receiving food, medical attention or even basic care while in captivity.
The emotional toll has also been severe on teachers, many of whom now fear reporting for duty in rural communities where schools are often isolated and poorly protected.
Speaking on behalf of the union, NUT leaders said teachers could no longer remain silent while their colleagues and students continue to face the threat of kidnapping.
According to the union, schools are meant to be centres of learning and hope, not places where children disappear and families are thrown into grief.
The union warned that unless urgent steps are taken to secure educational institutions, the country’s already struggling education sector could face a deeper crisis as teachers abandon vulnerable communities and parents withdraw their children from school.
The latest protest has reignited concerns about the safety of schools across Nigeria, particularly in rural areas where security presence is limited.
Although school kidnappings first gained global attention following the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls in Borno State in 2014, the menace has continued to evolve, spreading beyond the North-East into other parts of the country.
In recent years, armed groups have repeatedly targeted schools in Kaduna, Niger, Zamfara, Katsina and other states, abducting hundreds of students and teachers and forcing prolonged school closures.
Security experts warn that each attack leaves scars that extend far beyond the victims. Many children who survive such incidents struggle to return to school, while communities often lose confidence in the ability of authorities to protect them.
The Oyo abduction has been particularly alarming because it occurred in the South-West, a region traditionally considered safer from large-scale school attacks.
The incident has raised fears that criminal networks responsible for mass kidnappings are expanding their operations and targeting new areas of the country.
As teachers marched in solidarity with their abducted colleagues and students, many observers described the protest as a painful reminder that Nigeria’s education system remains vulnerable to insecurity.
For the families still waiting for the safe return of their loved ones, however, the demonstrations were about more than policy demands or public statements.
They were a plea for the nation not to forget the children and teachers whose futures now hang in the balance.
While security agencies say efforts to rescue the victims are ongoing, the uncertainty surrounding their fate continues to cast a dark shadow over classrooms, communities and an education sector struggling to protect its most vulnerable members.
