Governor Seyi Makinde has recently assured the people of Oyo State and the Southwest in general that the security challenges facing the region would soon be a thing of the past as the Southwest governors would soon launch a joint security operations code-named “Amotekun”.
Makinde made this disclosure while hosting top officials of the Vigilante Group Nigeria (VGN) and the Community Development Council (CDC), who paid him a courtesy call in his office in Agodi, Ibadan.
Makinde said, “Before the end of this year, I will launch the Oyo State Development Association for Socio-Economic Renaissance (OYODASER), a better version of the defunct MAMSER, and it will be a vehicle that we will use to make our people believe in this administration and the state.”
He also emphasized in his speech, the readiness of his administration to partner the VGN and CDC to find lasting solution to internal security challenges in the State.
Speaking on various efforts being put in place to nip insecurity in the bud in Oyo State and the region as a whole, Governor Makinde said the security architecture he plans to unveil soon is also linked to the emerging Southwest security structure being worked on by all the governors of the six Southwest states.
He said, “We want to have OYODASER and apart from this, we will have the Southwest-wide initiative known as AMOTEKUN, with operatives known as IRUNMOLE. But it is clear that the government cannot do it alone when it comes to the issue of security. We need to work together.”
The Governor gave the assurance that his administration would work towards ensuring that the activities of the Vigilante and Community Development Council (CDC) are strong and more effective.
He disclosed that, “I have been looking for the avenue through which we can meet, because my idea of moving the State forward involves rallying our people to support government’s effort. And I know that your organisation, Community Development Council, is in the best position to carry that out.”
Makinde reiterated that the Southwest Governors have agreed to launch the new unconventional security architecture that would not conflict with the Federal Government’s security structures such as the police, in order to curb the menace of insecurity in Southwest Nigeria.
He explained that the Governors in the Southwest recently held a summit because of the security challenges and agreed to tackle insecurity from an unconventional perspective, looking at where Vigilante groups and those who have local knowledge could be of help.
“We have formed an outfit called Amotekun. We have purchased vehicles and needed gadgets including motorcycles, because we realise that we need to police our environment and it is our people who have the knowledge of the local environment that will be engaged to carry out some certain operations,” Makinde added.
The Governor also called on the CDC to assist the State in its bid to make all the nooks and crannies of the State clean, save and habitable by joining hands with government to have zero tolerance for poor sanitation.
In his address, the Chairman of the Oyo State Community Development Council, Mr Hameed Shittu, said the Council and the State Vigilante Groups were meant to complement the efforts of the law enforcement agencies in promoting the security of lives and property in the communities as well as assisting in curbing and reducing incidences of crimes to its barest minimum.
He added that the Council was also established to promote communal spirit and sense of belonging among the people by creating an atmosphere of friendliness, which would engender cooperation of all the people not only in the Community Development Schemes but also in the programmes and policies of the State government.
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