OPINION: The Most Dangerous Thing About the Oyo Kidnapping Is That Fear Is Now Closing Schools

By Victor Olubiye

When armed men abduct children from a school, the damage does not end at the scene of the crime.

It travels.

It crosses local government boundaries. It moves beyond state lines. It reaches communities that were never attacked. It settles into the minds of parents, teachers and school administrators who begin to ask a frightening question:

"If it happened there, what stops it from happening here?"

That question appears to be shaping decisions far beyond Oyo State following the recent kidnapping incident involving students and teachers.

Reports indicate that some schools in neighbouring Ogun State have suspended academic activities indefinitely, citing security concerns and the need for greater protection before learning can continue. Whether those decisions are justified or not, they reveal something deeper about the state of education and security in Nigeria.

The kidnappers may have targeted one community, but fear has targeted many more.

That should concern every Nigerian.

The immediate victims of school kidnappings are easy to identify. They are the abducted children, their teachers and the families left behind to endure days or weeks of uncertainty.

The secondary victims are often overlooked.

They are the students who suddenly find themselves out of school because administrators fear they could be next.

They are the parents who become afraid to send their children to school.

They are the teachers who begin to see classrooms not as places of learning but as places of vulnerability.

And they are the communities forced to choose between education and safety.

The recent reactions in Ogun State illustrate a troubling reality. Even where no kidnapping has occurred, the perception of danger is now powerful enough to influence educational decisions.

Some people argue that the school closures are necessary precautions. They insist that it is better to be proactive than to wait for tragedy to strike.

Others disagree.

They argue that Ogun State has not experienced a similar attack recently and that shutting down schools risks creating unnecessary panic. They also point out that school closures should ideally follow official directives rather than individual decisions driven by fear.

Both sides raise legitimate concerns.

Yet the debate itself exposes the deeper problem.

When insecurity reaches a point where schools begin considering closure because of incidents in neighbouring states, the country is dealing with more than a security challenge. It is dealing with a crisis of confidence.

Confidence is an invisible but essential part of education.

Parents must have confidence that their children will return home safely.

Teachers must have confidence that their workplaces are secure.

Students must have confidence that schools are places of opportunity rather than potential danger.

Once that confidence begins to disappear, the effects can be devastating.

Nigeria is already struggling with millions of out-of-school children, learning poverty and educational inequalities. The country cannot afford a situation where fear becomes another barrier keeping children away from classrooms.

Unfortunately, that risk is becoming increasingly real.

The consequences of school kidnappings extend beyond ransom demands and rescue operations. They create psychological shockwaves that spread across entire regions.

One attack can influence decisions hundreds of kilometres away.

One kidnapping can trigger fear in communities that have never experienced such violence.

One incident can disrupt learning for thousands of children who were never directly involved.

This is why conversations about school kidnappings must go beyond rescue efforts alone.

Rescuing victims is essential. Bringing children and teachers home safely should always be the immediate priority.

But a nation cannot measure success solely by how many victims are rescued after an attack.

Success must also be measured by how effectively future attacks are prevented and how confidently parents can send their children to school without fear.

The recent developments following the Oyo kidnapping should serve as a warning.

The greatest danger is not only that criminals continue attacking schools.

The greater danger is that Nigerians are beginning to organise their lives around the expectation that such attacks can happen anywhere.

When fear starts determining whether children attend school, insecurity has already won part of the battle.

Education thrives in environments of stability, trust and confidence.

Fear destroys all three.

The children abducted in Oyo deserve justice and safe return. But Nigeria must also confront the wider consequences of a security crisis that is increasingly shaping decisions far beyond the original crime scene.

Because when one school is attacked and another school closes out of fear, the impact of kidnapping has already spread further than many people realise.

And that should alarm us all.