President Bola Tinubu’s aides, Bayo Onanuga and Daniel Bwala, on Saturday turned their attention to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his silence after the rescue of pupils and teachers abducted in Oyo State, accusing him of using the kidnapping for politics while failing to acknowledge their safe return.
Their comments shifted political attention from the rescue itself to how opposition leaders reacted after the victims regained their freedom.
The criticism followed the release of pupils and teachers from Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State after 57 days in captivity. The rescue, which ended weeks of anxiety for families and the public, opened a new round of political exchanges over how national leaders respond to security incidents.
Onanuga said nearly 18 hours after the victims regained their freedom, Atiku had not congratulated the Federal Government, security agencies or the rescued pupils and teachers.
He argued that Atiku had repeatedly used the kidnapping to criticise the Tinubu administration while the victims were still in captivity, yet had said nothing after they regained their freedom.
Onanuga wrote that Atiku had “weaponised the kidnap as a campaign issue” several times since it happened and questioned why there had been no public reaction after the successful rescue.
He suggested that the former vice president might be waiting for another negative incident before commenting on the administration’s handling of security.
Onanuga also drew a comparison with Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi. He praised Obi for publicly calling for thanksgiving after the rescue, although he noted that Obi did not commend President Tinubu or the Federal Government.
The comparison placed both opposition figures in different positions, with the presidency presenting Obi as having at least acknowledged the release of the victims while accusing Atiku of complete silence.
Daniel Bwala in an X post also criticised the opposition’s handling of recent national issues, arguing that some opposition leaders respond quickly to negative events but stay silent when there are positive outcomes.
Without mentioning Peter Obi by name at first, Bwala referred to an airport incident involving an opposition figure and accused him of misleading Nigerians after his vehicle was clamped for violating airport traffic rules.
He then indirectly turned to the former vice president, saying that he frequently comments on Nigeria’s problems but failed to show empathy after the rescue of the abducted pupils and teachers.
Bwala said the opposition claims it wants to lead Nigeria but fails to stand with citizens during moments that deserve national celebration.
He accused opposition politicians of using people’s suffering for political advantage while showing little interest in celebrating successful rescue efforts or human freedom.
This exchange followed weeks of public attention on the kidnapping, which drew criticism of the Federal Government’s security efforts while the victims were still in captivity.
The successful rescue changed the national conversation from demands for action to questions over how political leaders responded after the victims returned home safely.
Onanuga and Bwala used that moment to argue that public figures should not only criticise government failures but should also acknowledge successful outcomes when lives are saved.