The governor maintained that there was need for collaboration and cooperation between the executive arm of government and the legislature to deliver dividends of democracy and bring development to the people.
No fewer than six pupils, three teachers and the driver of a private school bus in Ekiti State were, on Monday night, kidnapped by gunmen suspected to be herdsmen.
They were abducted while returning from Eporo-Ekiti on the school bus.
Their kidnap came barely hours after two monarchs, the Onimojo of Imojo in Oye Local Government Area, Oba Olatunde Olusola, and the Elesun of Esun Ekiti in Ikole Local Government Area, Oba Babatunde Ogunsakin were killed by gunmen along Ipao-Oke Ako Road while their colleague, the Alara of Ara Ekiti, Oba Adebayo Fatoba in Ikole Local Government Area, managed to escape.
It was gathered that the kidnapped pupils were students of Apostolic Nursery and Primary School, Emure-Ekiti in Ekiti State.
Kidnappers of Ekiti school children demand N30m ransom
Abductors of school children contacted the families of their victims, demanding N30 million as ransom to release the five pupils and other victims.
A source close to the family of one of the children, said the kidnappers reached out to them yesterday evening, asking for N30 million naira in exchange for the freedom of their victims.
Police arrest 5 kidnap suspects
In a related development, the joint operation team of Ekiti State Police Command, Amotekun, OPC, Civil Defence and Local Hunters, also yesterday arrested five suspected kidnappers while in the bush combing operation through Oke-Osun, Ikere/Igbo-Okah to the thick forest around Iju/Ikere boundary.
During interrogation, the suspects, who claimed to be herdsmen, were found with two motorcycles, one cutlass, one jack knife/dagger and four phones.
They include Usman Jelili, Mohammed Bande, Abubakar Aliu, Isah Abdulahi and Suleiman Abdulahi.
On the slain traditional rulers, sources said they were returning from a function in Kogi State when their vehicles ran into the suspected kidnappers who had laid an ambush.
According to sources, as the bandits chased Alara in a bid to kidnap him, the two other monarchs also attempted to escape but were shot by the gunmen.
Chairman of the Ajoni Local Council Development Area, Micheal Ogungbemi, in whose domain the incident took place, said the corpses of the two monarchs had been recovered from the scene and taken to a mortuary.
He confirmed that the traditional rulers were coming from Kogi State when they were attacked in the Oke Ako area.
Vanguard gathered yesterday that tension was brewing in the communities of the two monarchs killed by the gunmen with a source saying that the people might be forced to arm themselves against herdsmen in the state, as those suspected to have killed the monarchs were herdsmen.
The sad incidents elicited an immediate response from Governor Biodun Oyebanji, who urged Ekiti residents not to despair over the kidnapping of the school pupils and their teachers as security had been stepped up to rescue them.
President Bola Tinubu ordered the security agencies to rescue those abducted, vowing that the killers of the traditional rulers would not escape justice.
In response to the clarion call, the Ekiti and Ondo Police commands have launched a joint rescue operation.
Nothing’ll be spared to rescue them – Oyebanji
In a statement, Governor Oyebanji described the kidnap as callous and unacceptable, saying nothing would be spared in efforts to rescue the children and their teachers.
“Security agencies in the state are already on the trail of the abductors with a mandate to bring the pupils and their teachers back safely,” he said
The governor said security is being stepped up across the state to flush out criminal elements from their hideouts.
While calling on the citizens to remain calm and vigilant, he urged them to cooperate with security agencies, by making available relevant information to the authorities.’’
He pledged a swift and comprehensive rescue operation to ensure the safe return of the abducted children.
Ekiti, Ondo Police launch joint rescue operation
Speaking with newsmen in Ado-Ekiti, the Police Public Relation Officer, PPRO, Sunday Abutu, stated that the command in Ekiti and their counterpart in Ondo have launched a search and rescue operation in the area the incidents took place and adjourning forest to rescue the 10 kidnapped victims.
He added that other sister agencies had equally joined the operation to bring the kidnapped victims home to their families and also apprehend the bandits responsible for the heinous crime.
On the killing of monarchs, Abutu said: “It was a case of suspected murder, adding that necessary action is underway as tactical and intelligence teams have been deployed to that axis to unravel the killers and bring them to book.”
Ekiti students hold peace walk
Meanwhile, the Federation of Ekiti State Students’ Union, FESSU, held a peaceful walk in Ado-Ekiti, seeking the state government’s intervention to rescue the pupils and restore security.
Speaking with journalists in Ado-Ekiti, National President of FESSU, Comrade Abel Adewale Ajibade, described the incident as pathetic.