Panic in Osun as rumored ‘bandit letters’ force school closures
A wave of panic swept through several communities in Osun State following reports of a purported letter dropped by bandits targeting local schools.
The scare resulted in the abrupt closure of academic institutions as terrified teachers, students, and parents scrambled for safety.
The commotion, which began around 10:30 AM in Ikirun, the headquarters of Ifelodun Local Government Area, quickly spread like wildfire to neighboring towns, including Obaagun, Iree, Eripa, Otan Ayegbaju, Ila-Orangun.
As rumors of the impending attacks intensified, classrooms in the affected areas were deserted. The anxiety soon reached the state capital, Osogbo, where several private schools hastily contacted parents and guardians to pick up their children.
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The incident has triggered a political row over the state’s security readiness. Reacting to the development, Olalekan Badmus, the Executive Director of Marine and Operations at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), criticized the state government’s handling of security infrastructure.
Badmus alleged that Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) had been withdrawn from strategic locations across Osun State for over a year by Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration.
“The vehicles were taken out under the guise of ‘refurbishment’ with no further explanations provided. This prolonged absence of critical assets could severely hamper response times against criminal elements,” Badmus warned.
In a swift reaction, Governor Ademola Adeleke, speaking through his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, debunked the claims that security had been compromised.
Rasheed dismissed the allegations regarding the armored vehicles, shifting the blame to the previous administration. He stated that the immediate past Oyetola administration had left the APCs “to rot,” forcing the current government to withdraw them for extensive refurbishment and rehabilitation ahead of redeployment.
Governor Adeleke reassured residents that robust security measures have been deployed to safeguard schools across the state. He urged the public to remain calm and ignore what he described as false alarms aimed at creating unnecessary panic.
