Patience and Strategy Behind the Rescue of 44 Abductees in Oriire

I’m tired of seeing people treat the rescue of 44 pupils and teachers in Oriire as if it were a quick delivery. Those victims were snatched on May 15 and walked out alive 56 days later. What people see as delay was really careful intelligence gathering and coordination among the Army, Navy, Air Force, Police, DSS, NIA, Civil Defence, Amotekun and local vigilantes. Before any boot moved, security forces spent weeks mapping ringleaders, their informants and hideouts. They resisted calls for quick ransom payouts that would only fuel future kidnappings. A hasty assault without solid intel could have ended in tragedy — and there were already casualties when captors killed two teachers and planted IEDs along the rescue route. This government and security coalition held the line under immense pressure. No ransom was paid, eight suspects were arrested, and the kingpins remain in custody. Lives were on the line, and they came home. That outcome, not a calendar count, should be our measure of success.

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