Abuja: The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has cautioned against politicising insecurity in response to protests over kidnappings. Wike issued this warning in Abuja while addressing members of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), FCT Wing.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the teachers gathered at the FCTA Secretariat to protest the killing of a teacher, Mr. Michael Oyedokun, by kidnappers in Oyo. Oyedokun was abducted along with other teachers and students from Community High School, Ahoro-Esinle, in Oriire Local Government Area of the state.
While addressing the protesters, the FCT minister assured that the Federal Government was actively working to rescue the abducted school children and their teachers. He expressed confidence in the security agencies’ ability to ensure the safe return of the kidnapped individuals.
Wike advised the protesting teachers against politicising the situation, pointing out that kidnappings of school children and teachers have occurred in various parts of the country without similar protests. He questioned why the Oyo incident was being treated differently and stressed the need to avoid politicisation of such issues.
Earlier, Mr. Abdullahi Shafa, Chairman of the union in the FCT, explained that the nationwide protest aimed to condemn the killing of the teacher and the abduction of the school children, while demanding their release. He noted that the protest was in compliance with a directive from the union’s national headquarters and emphasized that teachers should not face such violence while performing their duties.