By Lateef Adegbite
The battle to secure the south western states of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo, from the threats of armed killer Herdsmen and kidnappers, appears to have encouraged the All-Progressive Congress, APC, governors in these states to set up a joint security and monitoring Team.
The south west governors, who appears to have taken advantage of what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is doing at the Federal level, to strengthen the country’s security architecture had earlier established an internal security outfit known as Amotekun, which had been instrumental for the relative peace and security in the region over the last one year notwithstanding the activities of the kidnappers who disguise as Herdsmen along strategic roads in Ekiti, Oyo and other parts of the region to carry out their nefarious activities of attacking motorists are determined to go ahead with the plan.
Amotekun, the Local security outfit could achieve that much of maintaining peace within the short period of its existence in the south west geopolitical region because of the enhanced collaboration with the Nigerian Police Force, NPF, under the close watch of Kayode Egbtokun, at the various state levels. The collaboration appears to have given the Amotekun security outfit members the ammunition to be on the red alert to counter kidnap threats in the recent time in several parts of the six south western states.
Many believe that with what Amotekun members are currently doing in the region, the proposed Joint security network and monitoring team, which is expected to oversee and coordinate the security efforts across the south western region, would go a long way to further enhance the security of the region from the threat of armed Herdsmen , which were already giving troubles to people of Benue , Plateau and other parts of the north central and north western regions.
As a prelude to ensuring that the proposed Joint security and monitoring team keep to their mandate of overseeing the security of the south western geopolitical region to avoid turning it into another north western states of Kauna, Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi or the north eastern state of Borno and Yobe, where the Islamic Fundamentalist Group, Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West African Province, ISWAP are operating.
The south western state governors may have also taken the bold initiative to establish the joint security and monitoring team to avoid a repeat of what is happening in the north central states of Niger, Nasarawa, Benue, Plateau, and Taraba, where the Bandits Group and Herdsmen are making a mockery of the states internal security network with the consistent kidnapping cases occurring in the region.
The abduction of Maharazu Tsiga, an Army Brig. Gen. who incidentally was a former Director General of National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, from his country home at Tsiga, Danja Local Government Area of Katsina stateand had demanded for aN250 million ransom to facilitate his release bear eloquent testimony to the activities of the armed Herdsmen or Bandits’ group fighters turned kidnappers , which the south west governors are doing everything within their powers as the Chief Security Officer of their respective states to forestall.
The six south west governors , who are determined to succeed, in making the region a no go-area of armed Herdsmen and kidnappers or other infiltrator terrorists from the north western and north eastern geopolitical regions, were said to have resolved at their recent meeting hosted by Bbajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos state, ‘’to deploy advance technology , and surveillance systems to enhance the planned joint security network and monitoring team’’, in their areas of operations.
While the south west governors, who appears to have had the backing of President Tinubu, had made a bold statement to clip the wings of the armed Herdsmen turned kidnappers operating in different parts the region, the NPF, appears to have taken a cue from the military Special Forces, to deal decisively with criminal gangs .
Muyiwa Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, and the Force spokesperson, had confirmed that police Operatives had killed seven gunmen who had invaded Gobirage village in Suru Local Government Area in north western state of Kebbi state with the intention to kill, kidnap and go. They may have succeed in kidnaping one Umaru Bawa but that was how far they could go.
In confronting the Bandits Group, criminal gang which had kidnapped the said Umaru at Gobiraje village, the NPF, spokesperson, had said that the vigilant police officers, that were attached to the Kebbi state Command, acting on information had trailed the suspects to the notorious Tundari Forest in the Dakingari axis of the state and engaged the gang in fierce gun battle.
Given that the Bandits Group Criminal gang could not stand the superior fire power of the well-trained police men in the handling of weapons may have forced those who were unhurt to take to their heels for their own safety while abandoning their victim who was said to have been quickly rescued and taken to safety.
The police operatives who were said to have put up the courage to confront the hoodlums headlong were said to have recovered the sum of N3 million that was said to have been paid to them as ransom to facilitate the release of the kidnapped Umaru.
The bold initiative by the Kebbi police operatives in taken on the Gobiraje Kidnappers and dispossessed them of their N3 million ransom, which they had already collected from the victims’ family may have emboldened the police operatives in Ezioha Mbaitolu village, within the Umuele Umuaka Njaba , LGA, OF Imo state , to go after the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and Eastern Security Network, ESN, terrorizing the area. The police operatives were said to have killed two of the kingpins of the IPOB, and ESN, while several others escaped with bullet wound into the forest.
Besides eliminating two members of the IPOB and ESN, criminal gang, the police operatives , who are acting out the script of the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Egbetokun, to de decisive in dealing with the hoodlums, appears to have sent a message to the hoodlums, that ‘’the era of operation kill and go is over’’ as they were said to have recovered seven AK 47 rifles , 13 pump -actions guns and hundreds of assorted live ammunitions.
The Imo state police operatives were said to have dared the IPOB and ESN, kidnappers on January 9, 2025, at the Nkwukwo Forest in MMbaitoli LGA, which a security source had told The Value News is at the boundary with the Ubachima Forest in Awomama Oru LGA, of the south eastern state, with the exchange of bullets.
The Imo state police operatives were said to have killed three of the IPOB, ESN, killer gang members and disposed them of two AK 47, rifles, each loaded with 36 rounds of Live cartridges, one pump-action gun, one cutlas, four motorcycles, and charms.
The Police ACP, had said that the bold initiatives currently being put up by the Force operatives in different parts of the country in the recent time clearly shows the Force commitment ‘’ to maintaining Law and order’’ across the 36 states of the Federation and Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT’’
He noted that the police operative efforts to deal decisively with the criminal gangs at the various battle grounds in different parts of the country also shows the Force determination under the Leadership of Egbetokun, ‘’to dismantle the criminal networks that had continued to threaten the safety of lives and property across the country’’.
The bold initiative put up by the Kbii and Imo states police operatives in dealing with the criminal gangs in their areas of Jurisdiction may have encouraged the IGP, to give kudos’’ to their brave efforts ‘’ , and further emphasizing ‘’the need for continued vigilance in the fight against crime in the society.
Vintage Egbwtikun.
