The Federal Government has said that the recent abductions of school children across parts of the country were politically motivated, describing the attacks as coordinated attempts to undermine and embarrass President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The Minister of Education Morufu Olatunji Alausa stated this during an interview on , where he outlined a tougher security posture that includes treating school abductors as terrorists and deploying a technology-driven Safe School architecture nationwide.

Speaking during the interview, Alausa said the deliberate targeting of children and schools crossed a red line and required a decisive national response. He said, “When bad people in our society target the most vulnerable among us, our children and girls, they must be treated as terrorists. This should not be happening, and it will not be tolerated. Every one of these groups will be dealt with according to the rule of law and within our constitutional mandate.”

The minister said recent incidents showed signs of coordination and political intent, arguing that the attacks were designed to weaken public confidence in the government. He said, “What happened in the past few weeks had some political inclination to it. There were coordinated attacks on the sanctity of our country, and they wanted to embarrass this government. But people do not know this President. One thing he detests the most is blackmail, and he took charge.”

Alausa disclosed that intelligence existed ahead of some of the attacks, particularly in Kebbi State, and that security agencies were already engaged before the incidents occurred. He said, “Our intelligence agencies were working. I was speaking with the Director General of the DSS multiple times every day. Their intelligence gathering is very robust, and they knew what was happening. Security meetings were held at the state level, deployments were made, and information was shared.”

According to him, the government has since intensified coordinated security operations nationwide, leading to arrests and the recovery of weapons. He said, “You have seen renewed efforts across the country. People have been arrested, ammunition has been impounded, and coordinated interventions are ongoing. This response is not temporary. It will be sustained now and into the future.”

On school safety, the minister said the Federal Government has overhauled the Safe School Initiative by introducing a central command-and-control structure linked directly to security agencies. He explained, “We now have a central command and control centre for the Safe School strategy, working with the military, the police, the DSS, and other agencies. This allows us to respond faster and more effectively when there is a threat.”

Alausa said a major pillar of the new approach is the digital monitoring of schools nationwide. He said, “What we are doing now is moving all schools in the country, public and private, onto one platform. They are being geofenced so that we know what is happening in every school. We are aggregating all this data into a centralized dashboard that we can see and monitor in real time.”

He added that technology and space-based tools are being deployed to strengthen surveillance and early warning systems. According to him, “We are using robust technology, including geotagging and support from our space research agency, so that schools can be monitored and protected better. This is about prevention, not just response.”

The minister said school closures following abductions were taken strictly as precautionary security measures and were reversed as soon as conditions improved. He said, “When the children were abducted, we did the right thing by closing some schools. But within weeks, those schools were reopened. And even during that period, education did not stop. We deployed online schooling platforms, learning passports, and digital systems so there were no missed academic opportunities.”

He also said the government provided psychosocial and mental health support to affected schools. He noted, “Beyond security, we focused on counseling and psychosocial support for these children and their teachers. Protecting our children also means helping them recover from trauma.”

Alausa assured Nigerians that collaboration with state governments has been strengthened under the renewed security framework. He said, “We are working closely with subnational governments. We have written to the Inspector General of Police to identify officers responsible for Safe School initiatives at state and local government levels. These names are being integrated into a national database so everyone is connected.”

He maintained that the measures taken reflect a broader commitment to ensuring that schools remain safe spaces. According to him, “This was a wake-up call. But we are determined to do everything humanly possible to prevent the abduction of any child from school. Parents deserve confidence, and children deserve to learn in safety across Nigeria.”