Kwara Residents Reject Mats, Buckets From Tinubu Govt, Demand Rescue of 176 Abductees

Akahi News learnt that residents of Woro community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State have erupted in anger after a delegation reportedly sent by the Federal Government arrived with relief items such as mats, buckets and school bags for families affected by a deadly terrorist attack. The gesture, intended as compassion, was met with fury.

In a video obtained by SaharaReporters on Monday, grieving residents were seen angrily rejecting the items, describing them as an insult to their dignity in the face of the scale of loss suffered by the community. When a government sends buckets to people whose loved ones have been kidnapped, something has gone terribly wrong in the understanding of human suffering.

“We don’t need these things,” some of the residents were heard saying in the video. “What we want is security and the return of our people.”

Over 200 Killed, 176 Still in Captivity

Akahi News gathered that the delegation was said to have delivered the items in an ambulance, claiming they were sent by the government. But community members refused to accept the materials, insisting that their most urgent need was not relief items but security and the immediate rescue of their abducted relatives.

The anger follows the reported killing of over 200 people in the area during an attack by terrorists suspected to be linked to Boko Haram. In addition to the mass killings, at least 176 women and children were abducted during the attack and are still in captivity. Community members said many of the abducted victims are wives and children of those killed, worsening the humanitarian crisis in the area.

It was alleged that the development comes days after disturbing video footage emerged showing the kidnapped victims pleading for urgent rescue. The victims, abducted on February 3 from Woro and neighbouring Kososo communities, appeared weak, exhausted and in deplorable conditions. Two months in captivity. Two months of fear, hunger, and uncertainty.

In the footage, one of the terrorists, speaking in Hausa, claimed responsibility for the abduction and said the captives were being given a “final opportunity” to appeal to authorities. “We are the ones who kidnapped the people of Woro and Kososo,” the terrorist said. “We are giving them a final opportunity to appeal to the government.”

The victims, mostly women and children, echoed desperate pleas for help in multiple languages. One visibly weak young woman, speaking in English, appealed to authorities and the public: “Please, we are begging you, this is the last opportunity they gave us. We have small children with us and some pregnant women. Please assist us.”

Another victim, speaking in Yoruba, called on both Kwara and Oyo state governments to intervene urgently, stressing that their lives depended on immediate action.

Mats and Buckets Versus Human Lives

Akahi News had earlier reported on the growing insecurity in parts of Kwara State, which had long been considered relatively peaceful compared to the North-East. The February 3 attack shattered that illusion. Woro and Kososo communities now know what residents of Borno and Yobe have known for years: terrorism has no permanent address.

It is not a child’s play for a government to send relief items to a community that has buried over 200 of its own and is still waiting for 176 kidnapped relatives to return. Mats and buckets do not bring back the dead. School bags do not comfort a mother whose child was taken from her arms. The gesture, however well-intentioned, reeks of a government that does not understand the depth of the trauma.

The residents of Woro have made their position clear. They do not need charity. They need security. They do not need buckets. They need their daughters, wives, and children back. They do not need a delegation in an ambulance. They need a military operation that brings the abductees home alive.

The terrorists holding the 176 captives have given what they call a “final opportunity.” That language is chilling. It suggests that time is running out. It suggests that if the government does not act, the abductees may face the same fate as the over 200 who were killed.

Where is the rescue mission? Where is the hostage negotiation team? Where is the urgency that such a situation demands? These are the questions the Federal Government must answer—not with mats and buckets, but with action.

The video of the abducted women and children pleading for their lives should haunt every official in Abuja. A pregnant woman. Small children. Exhausted faces. Desperate voices. And the government’s response? An ambulance carrying buckets.

That is not governance. That is an insult.

The people of Woro have spoken. They have rejected the insult. Now they wait—praying that someone in power is listening, and that the 176 captives are not abandoned to the fate that has already claimed so many.

Key Summary Box

What happened: Residents of Woro community in Kwara State angrily rejected relief items (mats, buckets, school bags) sent by a government delegation, demanding instead the rescue of 176 abducted relatives and improved security.
The attack: Terrorists suspected to be linked to Boko Haram attacked Woro and neighbouring Kososo communities on February 3, killing over 200 people and abducting 176 women and children.
The video: Disturbing footage emerged showing the kidnapped victims—weak, exhausted, and in deplorable conditions—pleading for urgent rescue. A terrorist claimed it was their “final opportunity” to appeal to authorities.
The government’s response: A delegation delivered relief items in an ambulance. Residents rejected the gesture as an insult to their dignity.
Why it matters to Nigerians: The incident highlights the government’s perceived insensitivity and ineffectiveness in responding to mass abductions, raising questions about the value placed on citizens’ lives.
Bottom line: Over 200 dead. 176 still in captivity. And the government sends buckets. The people of Woro are outraged—and they have every right to be.