The federal government of Nigeria has responded to rapper Falz, who asked why kidnappers were not apprehended after 38 worshippers were released in Kwara State.
On Sunday, November 23, 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu confirmed via his social media pages the release of the 38 victims of the Kwara church abduction.
The incident dates back to November 18, 2025, when bandits attacked a branch of the Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku town, Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State. Reports indicate that the attack on the church in Oke Isegun occurred during a thanksgiving service celebrating the safe return of 18 members who had been kidnapped about three weeks earlier.
During the service, the attackers invaded the church, abducted 38 people including the pastor, and killed three worshippers. The kidnappers later demanded N100 million per person for the release, totaling N3.8 billion.
President Tinubu later confirmed that all 38 abducted worshippers had been rescued. He said, “My fellow Nigerians, you will recall that I cancelled my trip to the G20 Summit in South Africa to enable me to coordinate the security efforts at home. Thanks to the efforts of our security forces over the last few days, all the 38 worshippers abducted in Eruku, Kwara State have been rescued.”
Despite this announcement, the statement did not satisfy rapper Falz and several other Nigerians, who questioned why none of the perpetrators had been arrested despite the successful rescue.
Falz, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, which has generated over 600,000 impressions, asked:
“THIS DOES NOT CUT IT. Where are the abductors? Were they killed? How many arrests were made?”In response, the Inspector General of the Nigerian Police Force, Kayode Egbetokun, explained that the kidnappers were not arrested because they voluntarily came forward for a peace talk. He said, “We didn’t arrest the bandits because they came out voluntarily for the peace talk.”
Additionally, actress Bukola Arugba, who is from Eruku in Kwara State, was seen expressing joy following the release of the 38 worshippers abducted during the church service.
