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Angry protesters lockdown Ibadan, demand urgent rescue of abducted Oyo teachers, pupils
Hundreds of teachers and civil society activists marched through Ibadan on Friday, demanding immediate action to free colleagues and pupils kidnapped in Oriire Local Government Area.

The protest, led by the Oyo State Teachers Action Group and the Nigeria Teachers Congress, NTC, followed the May 15 abduction of victims in Esiele and Yawota communities near Ogbomoso.

—“Do more to rescue them”—

NTC National President Rev. Bunmi Thomas told protesters the rally was lawful and necessary. “We are demanding pragmatic action from government to secure the release of the abducted teachers and students,” he said.

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While acknowledging ongoing rescue efforts, Thomas insisted more must be done: “If the government is trying and the result is not there, then efforts must be intensified.”

He raised alarm over the children’s condition: “We have kids as young as two and three years old in the bush, exposed to rain and harsh weather.”

Thomas also called for security in all public schools: “We cannot continue to work while living in danger. Government must attach security personnel to every government school.”

He stressed the protest was not against Governor Seyi Makinde: “No reasonable teacher in Oyo State is against Governor Makinde because he has performed excellently well.”

—Government responds–,

Executive Assistant on Security Matters, retired CP Sunday Odukoya, addressed protesters on behalf of the state government. “It is your constitutional right to protest and let government know your concerns,” he said, assuring that rescue operations were ongoing.

Odukoya also promised no teacher would be victimized for joining the protest.

Protesters said their only demand is the safe and swift return of the kidnapped teachers and pupils.

[ Channels TV]

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A Federal Capital Territory, FCT, senatorial aspirant under the platform of the Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC, has revealed how the primary election was allegedly manipulated by some party leaders.

Recall that the activist-turned politician contested for the FCT Senate but pulled out over alleged misconduct by officials.

In a lengthy statement detailing how the primary election was conducted, Aisha alleged that the exercise was conducted in a closed room with “predetermined outcome dressed in procedural formalities”.

She said after the exercise was “repeatedly postponed”, the venue was also “changed at the last minute”.

Aisha alleged that the “guidelines of the party were not followed. Delegate based process was introduced to be conducted at a central location instead of the direct primaries to be conducted at Local Government headquarters.

“When the moment came, the contest was not decided by delegates in the open; it was affirmed in a closed room, away from the people whose voices it was supposed to reflect.

“The party will indeed go on to release statements upon statements about the free and fair nature of the Abuja FCT primaries.

“They are entitled to their voice, but the facts that transpired when litigated by conscience and the guidelines of the electoral act do not reflect justice and fairness”.

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The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tshoho, has transferred the suit challenging the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to a new judge for an accelerated hearing.

The lawsuit, which was filed by Nafiu-Bala Gombe, a former National Deputy Chairman of the party, was moved from Justice Emeka Nwite to Justice Peter Lifu following Justice Nwite’s recent promotion to the Court of Appeal.

In the lawsuit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, Gombe is seeking an order to stop the embattled National Chairman, Senator David Mark, National Secretary Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and other members of the interim National Working Committee (NWC) from parading themselves as leaders of the ADC.

Gombe contends that the current leadership setup violates both the party’s internal constitution and the Electoral Act. The case names the ADC, Mark, Aregbesola, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and former party chairman Ralph Nwosu as defendants.

The reassignment follows a directives from the Supreme Court, which intervened in the internal party dispute on April 30. The apex court set aside an earlier Court of Appeal order that had caused INEC to derecognize the David Mark-led faction, and instead ordered all parties back to the Federal High Court for a swift and conclusive trial.

Before the case was transferred, it had faced a series of delays. Justice Nwite had previously halted the matter indefinitely while waiting for the Supreme Court’s decision.

When the case resumed on May 8, Gombe’s legal team, led by Luka Haruna (SAN), requested that the Chief Judge reassign the case to another courtroom.
Defense lawyers representing the ADC, Mark, Aregbesola, and Nwosu strongly opposed changing judges at the time. They argued that the court should instead wait for a certified true copy of the Supreme Court judgment to guide the lower court’s proceedings.

Consequently, the case was briefly paused again before the Chief Judge eventually made the decision to reassign the file to Justice Lifu.