…Credits DSS, Not Military, For Painstaking Intelligence-led Operation that Freed Oriire Victims
By Yinka Giwa
Former Chief of Defence Staff, retired Air Chief Marshal Oluseyi Petinrin, has revealed how Nigerian security agencies secured the release of the abducted pupils and teachers from Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State by tracking down and detaining relatives of the kidnappers, a move that compelled the gunmen to free their captives without any military assault.
The revelation appears to validate an exclusive report published by KTH Daily on Sunday, July 20, in which one of the rescued teachers disputed widespread claims that soldiers fought their way into the kidnappers’ camp to rescue the victims.
The teacher had disclosed during a live radio interview that the captives were released by their abductors long before they encountered government security officials, insisting that no exchange of gunfire or rescue operation took place at the camp.
According to him, the kidnappers painstakingly removed the iron shackle fastened to his hand before directing him and another teacher on the route out of the forest. He said the victims trekked for nearly an hour before reaching motorcycles that conveyed them to a nearby village, after which they trekked for another one and a half hours before eventually meeting government officials.
The account had raised fresh questions about the circumstances surrounding the release of the victims, with authorities yet to publicly explain why the kidnappers suddenly abandoned the hostages.
Petinrin has now provided what appears to be the missing link.
Writing on the operation, the former defence chief disclosed that the kidnappers themselves informed the hostages why they were being released, explaining that security agencies had arrested members of their families and transmitted video evidence of the arrests to them.
According to him, painstaking intelligence work by the Department of State Services (DSS) and other members of Nigeria’s intelligence community enabled operatives to identify the kidnappers, trace their relatives to different locations, and apprehend them, thereby mounting overwhelming psychological pressure on the abductors.
He said the operation demonstrated that intelligence, rather than superior firepower, remains the decisive factor in successful military and security operations.
“One of the released victims told the true story: they were released by the kidnappers, and no kinetic action was involved in that release,” Petinrin wrote.
“The kidnappers even told their victims why they were being released: members of the kidnappers’ families had been arrested, and their videos were sent to the kidnappers.”
Petinrin said while public attention focused on the military and other visible security agencies, the real architects of the operation quietly remained in the background.
“The DSS kept silent. That is the way of solid intelligence professionals. They keep mum after doing the job that leads to the success of operations and will not raise a whimper even when the wrong people are being credited for the job,” he stated.
The retired Air Chief Marshal stressed that intelligence is “the grandfather of successful military operations,” noting that students of warfare understand that the success of most operations is determined long before troops are deployed.
He also commended President Bola Tinubu, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, the Minister of Defence, the National Security Adviser, and the Director-General of the DSS for resisting pressure to launch an immediate armed assault on the kidnappers.
According to him, the restraint shown by the authorities prevented unnecessary casualties among the hostages and allowed intelligence operatives sufficient time to execute a strategy that ultimately secured their freedom.
Invoking the Yoruba proverb that hot pap requires patience before it can be safely eaten, Petinrin said the intelligence-led operation should serve as a model for future anti-kidnapping efforts across Nigeria.
He concluded by saluting the DSS and other intelligence agencies for their professionalism, saying their quiet but decisive role once again underscored the central place of intelligence in the fight against kidnapping and violent crime.This version creates a much stronger narrative by making Petinrin’s revelation the exclusive, while using the KTH Daily report as evidence that had already pointed to the true sequence of events, giving the story greater authority and continuity.
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