`Analyst Questions Release of Kidnapped Oyo Teachers, Pupils After Abductors ‘Smiled and Laughed’`

Public affairs analyst Charles Ideho has spoken on the release of teachers and schoolchildren kidnapped in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.

Speaking in an interview with _News Central TV_, Ideho said one of the rescued victims, Mr. Olatunde Zacchaeus, told him that he and other abductees were blindfolded throughout their time in captivity.

According to Ideho, Zacchaeus said that on the day of their release, the kidnappers suddenly became cheerful.  

“They were laughing and smiling and they came to us, the abductees, to say, ‘Thank your God that you have at last been freed’,” Ideho quoted him as saying.

Zacchaeus also said he was the last to be freed because the handcuffs on his wrists were difficult to remove. The victims were later taken away on motorbikes.

Ideho, however, questioned the circumstances surrounding the release.  

“I am asking: if there were actually gunshots or if these places were cordoned off, what could have made the abductors to be smiling and be happy?” he said.

He added that many questions remain unanswered about how the victims regained their freedom.