How State Pressure Broke the Eruku Bandits as DSS Military Compelled Release of 38 Worshippers

The Presidency has revealed that the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigerian military directly pressured and compelled the bandits who abducted 38 church worshippers in Eruku, Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State, into releasing their victims unharmed.

Speaking on Monday during an interview on Arise Television, President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that security operatives established firm communication with the kidnappers and ordered them to release the hostages.

According to Onanuga, the criminals did not resist because they fully understood the grave consequences of defying a direct government instruction.

“They got in contact with the bandits to release those people unharmed, and finally on Sunday they were able to get them out,” he said.

Onanuga stressed that security agencies have developed sophisticated methods of monitoring armed groups and tracking their movements in real time, but sometimes hold back from launching immediate assaults to avoid deadly collateral damage against abducted civilians.

“The security people — at the risk of revealing how they work — have a way of tracking these people. They know what’s going on at any time. What sometimes restrains them from going after the kidnappers is the risk of collateral damage,” he explained.

Pressed on how the victims were rescued without a firefight — particularly since the bandits had reportedly killed some victims during the initial church attack — the presidential aide insisted the government’s first responsibility was protecting innocent lives.

“They contacted them to release the victims because the bandits know the consequences of not listening to government demands,” he maintained.
“The first thing government must do is get those people freed. That objective has been achieved. The next level of action is for the security agencies, and I don’t want to pre-empt them.”

All 38 abducted worshippers were confirmed rescued alive, though authorities have not provided details of follow-up operations or whether the suspected kidnappers are currently being tracked for arrest.

The brazen attack in Eruku has deepened public anxiety over the rising wave of insecurity across Kwara South and neighbouring states, intensifying calls for stronger intelligence-driven counter-kidnap strategies and reinforcement of community security systems.