By Kamsi Anayo
Femi Falana, SAN, human rights lawyer, has called for the immediate rescue of schoolchidren and teachers abducted in Oyo State.
He warned that the victims are enduring severe hardship in captivity.
Falana made the appeal on Friday during a June 12 protest held under the Ikeja Bridge in Lagos.
The demonstrators gathered to decry insecurity, economic hardship and what they described as a declining democratic culture in the country.
The protest was later marked by tension after supporters and counter-protesters converged on the same venue, forcing police intervention to prevent a breakdown of order during Democracy Day commemorations.
Falana stated that the protest was not only about the abducted school pupils, also about wider concerns affecting Nigerians, including rising poverty and alleged injustice by security agencies.
He noted that the continued kidnapping of schoolchildren in Oyo and Borno states reflects a deepening security crisis that must be urgently addressed.
“Those kids are suffering. No medical attention, no food for them,” he said.
Falana added that Nigerians were, in a broader sense, also “in custody” due to worsening national conditions.
He demanded immediate action from the authorities to secure the release of the victims and their teachers.
Falana also said that one of the abducted teachers had been killed, describing the act as a violent attempt to pressure the government into hasten rescue efforts.
“As you are well aware, a teacher has been beheaded in order to convince the government to move speedily to have those children released,” he said.
