The Oyo State House of Assembly has officially thrown its weight behind Governor Seyi Makinde’s call for an independent international investigation into the abduction of school pupils and teachers in the Oriire Local Government Area of the state.

Through a statement issued by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin, the state legislature asserted that a United Nations-backed probe is necessary to establish the facts of the mass abduction, identify any systemic vulnerabilities, and implement long-term protective measures for school environments.

The Assembly emphasized that since domestic efforts have not yet succeeded in permanently ending mass school abductions, seeking international technical expertise is a practical step to prevent future occurrences.

This legislative support comes amid a widening political rift over the handling of the incident. Governor Makinde first demanded the UN intervention during a statewide broadcast on Monday, shortly after receiving the forty-five rescued victims who had spent fifty-six days in captivity following their abduction on May 15, 2026.

The governor argued that the circumstances of the incident—which occurred hours after he declared his 2027 presidential ambition—were “grey and unusual” enough to warrant external scrutiny. However, both the Presidency and the Senate quickly condemned the governor’s demand, labeling it politically motivated and warning that inviting foreign bodies to investigate domestic security matters undermines Nigeria’s sovereign defense institutions and the sacrifices of the military personnel who executed the successful rescue.

In its defense of the governor, the Oyo State House of Assembly argued that the Senate’s cautionary resolutions misconstrued Makinde’s intentions. The lawmakers clarified that the demand for international scrutiny is not meant to discredit or denigrate Nigeria’s security agencies, but rather to reinforce public trust and establish transparent accountability at all levels of the national security architecture. While congratulating the state’s citizens on the safe return of the students and teachers, the Assembly maintained that a thorough, transparent international review remains the most credible path to safeguarding classrooms across the country.