THE TAKE IT BACK MOVEMENT CONDEMN NANS’ SILENCE ON THE ABDUCTION OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN OYO STATE

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE!

May 31, 2026.

THE TAKE IT BACK MOVEMENT CONDEMN NANS’ SILENCE ON THE ABDUCTION OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN OYO STATE.

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has once again demonstrated how far it has drifted from its historic responsibility of defending the interests, welfare and security of Nigerian students.

The recent abduction of students and teachers in Oyo State is a tragic incident that should have provoked immediate outrage and action from the leadership of NANS. Instead, what Nigerians have witnessed is an embarrassing and deafening silence from an organization that claims to be the umbrella body of students in the country.

The NANS we knew in the past would not have remained silent in the face of such a disturbing development. The NANS of old would have declared a state of emergency on student safety, mobilized students across campuses, organized peaceful protests and mounted sustained pressure on government authorities until concrete actions were taken to secure the release of the victims and improve security around educational institutions.

Unfortunately, today’s NANS appears more interested in maintaining a comfortable relationship with those in power than representing the interests of the students it was created to serve.

When innocent students and teachers are abducted and NANS fails to act, it raises serious questions about the relevance and purpose of the organization. What exactly is NANS defending if it cannot speak up when the lives and safety of students are under direct attack?

Student unionism has never been about praise-singing governments or seeking political patronage. It has always been about advocacy, resistance against injustice and holding authorities accountable whenever the rights and welfare of students are threatened.

We therefore call on the leadership of NANS to immediately break its silence and take concrete steps towards demanding the safe release of the abducted students and teachers. We also call on the relevant security agencies and the Oyo State Government to intensify efforts to rescue the victims and bring the perpetrators to justice.

The continued silence of NANS in moments like this only reinforces the growing perception that the organization no longer represents Nigerian students but has instead become an appendage of the political establishment.

The lives of students matter. Their safety matters. Their future matters.

Nigerian students deserve a vibrant, independent and courageous NANS that will stand up for them in times of crisis, not an organization that watches from the sidelines while students suffer.

And to Asefon Sunday Dayo, you are the SSA to the president on students engagement and a former NANS national president. What is your position on this abduction?

You were appointed as the SSA to the president on students engagement to represent Nigerian students at large. Silence is complicity.

NANS is going astray but we will not watch while the interest of Nigerian students and Nigerians at large is not protected.

Adekunle Adeyemi Taofeek (Scotty Aluta)
Lagos State Coordinator, Take It Back Movement.