The Oyo State Government has denied claims that it paid a ransom to secure the release of pupils and teachers abducted in Oriire Local Government Area of the state.

The allegation was made by social media personality Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), who claimed in a Facebook post on Friday that the government paid the kidnappers but the victims were not released despite the payment.

Reacting through the Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, the state government described the claim as false and dismissed it as the handiwork of irresponsible bloggers.

Oyelade clarified that although both the Oyo State and Federal Governments are working to secure the safe release of the victims abducted on May 15, no ransom has been paid.

He urged members of the public to disregard what he described as false reports and rely only on information released through official government channels.

The commissioner reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring the safe return of the abducted pupils and teachers, expressing optimism that the incident would soon be brought to an end.