Labour Party’s Ikezue Urges Urgent Rescue Efforts for Kidnap Victims, Especially Oyo Schoolchildren
By Chizoba Njaka
Ven. Tochukwu Sagacious Ikezue, Labour Party candidate for Anambra Central Senatorial District in the 2027 elections, has urged the Federal Government and the Nigerian military to intensify efforts to free children and other citizens still held by kidnappers nationwide.
In a statement to journalists, Ven. Ikezue warned that public attention has shifted away from abducted victims, leaving many families to endure prolonged uncertainty while national discourse focuses on political controversies.
He singled out children abducted during the May 15 attack on schools in Oyo State, saying the victims appear to have been largely forgotten despite the ongoing trauma for their families. In his words, "The protection of lives and the rescue of citizens in captivity should be the government's foremost responsibility."
He called on military forces to respond decisively and for government agencies to prioritize rescue operations. "Those children abducted since May 15 are still in the custody of bandits, yet it seems everyone has forgotten them while attention is being diverted to other matters," he added.
Ven. Ikezue urged security agencies to step up intelligence-led operations and to strengthen collaboration with local communities to secure the safe release of all captives and restore public confidence in Nigeria's security architecture. He noted that mass abductions are a nationwide problem, citing past incidents in Borno, Kaduna, Katsina, Niger and Zamfara states.
Referencing the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls abduction, Ven. Ikezue observed that while many victims have returned over the years, some remain missing more than a decade on. He emphasized that success in security operations should be judged not only by arrests or neutralisation of criminals but by the safe return of innocent citizens still in captivity.
He appealed to Nigerians to maintain solidarity with families of abducted victims and to continue pressing for decisive government action until every captive is reunited with their loved ones.