Student Body and Civil Society Group Clash Over Disruption of Security Protest

A verbal dispute erupted between leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and the Take It Back Movement regarding a recent physical altercations over the abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in Oyo State.

The two groups traded accusations on Thursday during a public security summit titled *“Oyo At A Crossroads: Security, Safety and The Future,”* held at the Ibadan Civic Centre in Agodi. The friction stems from a mid-May incident where many students and teachers were abducted during coordinated attacks on several primary and secondary schools within the Oriire Local Government Area.

According to representatives of the Take It Back Movement, a peaceful demonstration demanding the urgent rescue of the abductees was violently intercepted around the Bodija axis in Ibadan North.

Civil society coordinators alleged that the state government systematically deployed anti-protest student groups in a “divide and rule” strategy to disrupt the rally and shield administration officials from public accountability. They argued that insecurity remains a political failure born of poor social infrastructure and unfulfilled constitutional mandates, demanding that failing administrators resign.

Conversely, NANS leadership strongly denied receiving state sponsorship or acting as anti-protest agents. A spokesperson for the NANS Joint Campus Council asserted that their convoy of roughly 30 vehicles was simply traveling through Bodija en route to the actual site of the kidnapping in Ogbomoso when protesters blocked the roadway.

According to the student body, the physical altercation began only after demonstration participants started hurling stones at their vehicles.

NANS stated that while they demand intensified rescue efforts from security forces, they align with organized labor and public directives advising against continuous street protests, which officials warn could be leveraged by kidnappers to endanger the hostages.

Joining the debate, the National Association of Seadogs criticized the government’s overall handling of regional kidnappings, arguing that political bureaucracy continues to stall effective action.

They pointed to state resistance against local self-determination groups seeking to clear criminal forest hideouts as evidence that political considerations are being prioritized over direct security operations.