The pan-Yoruba socio-cultural and socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has called on governments in the South West to secure the region following the influx of bandits into the region.
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde Monday raised the alarm that bandits being dislodged in the northern part of Nigeria are camping in parts of Oyo State.
However, the factional National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Jare Ajayi in a statement issued yesterday said the disclosure of this nature coming from the Chief Security Officer of a state was not something to be treated with levity.
It, therefore, called on all the governors of the South Western States to, “as a matter of urgency, hold a meeting to map out strategies to expel the bandits from the region and to ensure that such elements do not infiltrate Yorubaland at any time again”.
“For these objectives to be achieved, there is the need to carry certain groups along. These are the security agencies that will implement whatever security decisions reached, traditional rulers and heads of local vigilantes known as ‘Ode’.
Afenifere noted that whatever strategies that were devised should include functional up-to-date equipment for those who would be on the fields, attractive incentives and the deployment of modern technologies to assist in identifying the bandits and their hideouts.
While urging security agencies and citizens not to take the issue of security lightly, it said traditional rulers and community leaders in different parts of Yorubaland should not keep quiet whenever they notice any indication suggestive of security threat.
It said: “For example, until the governor made the revelation on Monday, such grave security danger was unknown to members of the public, yet there are people living in the Fashola area where the bandits were reported to have established a camp. It is not unlikely that similar camps could be found in some other parts of the South West, hence the need for urgent and effective action”.