We won’t allow killer herdsmen, kidnappers in our forest- Ogun govt

Ogun State Government has said it will not allow any part of the state to be taken over by terrorists, killer herdsmen, kidnappers or bandits as a safe haven to unleash mayhem on the people.

The state government said it is already collaborating with neighbouring states like Oyo and Lagos to comb its forests and smoke out those who are harbingers of destruction.

It would be recalled that the state has witnessed an upsurge in criminal activities, with suspected Fulani herdsmen unleashing mayhem on motorists on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

In the same vein, eight villages in the Imeko-Afon Local Government Area of the state was also recently attacked by murderous herders as well as the violent exchange between herdsmen and some Ohori farmers at Idofa village, which left five persons dead, and property worth millions of naira destroyed. 

Chairman of Amotekun in the state, Mr Dave Akinyemi, a retired police commissioner said provision of adequate security has been a cardinal and focal point of Governor Dapo Abiodun since assuming office.

According to him, with the increase in cases of kidnapping on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Amotekun personnel from Ogun and Oyo States are now combing the forests to dislodge the terrorists, a move he said, has been yielding positive results.

Akinyemi noted that it will be preposterous to suggest that the state governor or any other governor in the South West has been playing politics with the lives of the people.

He said the Abiodun-led administration is not unaware of its constitutional responsibility to secure lives and property of her citizens, adding that the current administration in the state is doing so in many areas.

Akinyemi said that the state government has concluded arrangements to fortify all the 20 local government areas of the state with Amotekun operatives, noting that it will be complemented by some operatives, who recently concluded their training and are waiting to be mobilised.

The Amotekun boss also noted that the Corps has been collaborating with the Army, Police, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) among others to rid the state of criminals.

He disclosed that the inter-agency cooperation has led to the arrest of over 50 cultists and other hoodlums in Sagamu and other areas in Ogun East senatorial district.

Akinyemi said the security situation in Ogun State is a peculiar one as the state shares border with the nation’s commercial capital, with international borders that are porous and easily accessible by criminals.

“There are also threats by armed herders from the North, and by local outlaws,” the Amotekun boss noted.

He, however, assured that the state will rout the criminals with superior fire power, adding that government has spent so much to upgrade the security architecture of the state.

“Ogun will continue to remain the most peaceful state in the country,” Akinyemi added.