Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, met with the service chiefs on Thursday to discuss the various strategic security measures to be considered.
The meeting stems from the recent security breaches in Ekiti State following the killing of two traditional rulers in Oke-Ako area and the abduction of some school pupils and their teachers in Emure, Ekiti.
During the meeting, Oyebanji described that Ekiti State had been experiencing peace for the past years, but that the peace was truncated by the security breaches that occurred a few days ago.
“I needed to rush here because the President spoke with me and gave certain directives that I needed to act on as soon as possible.
“What makes the Ekiti situation a bit pathetic was the dimension it took. Among the Yoruba people, the traditional rulers are next to God. When you bring down two traditional rulers at once in such a gruesome manner, it sends a very dangerous signal to the entire race,” he said.
Furthermore, according to the Cps Ekiti on their Facebook page, Oyebanji stressed that the current abduction of schoolchildren signifies a dangerous height of insecurity in the state, adding that such had never occurred in the state.
The governor, while speaking with the military top hierarchy, appealed for the deployment of more military personnel to the state to spurt criminal hideouts and also makes provision for a forward operating base to strengthen the security architecture of the state.
Adding to the state government’s support for the military in getting rid of the criminals infiltrating the state, the governor lamented:
“If we have enough men on the ground, I mean the armed forces, there is a way we can guard the three senatorial districts because we have an idea of where these people are hiding, and most of the time when the army joins, including the local vigilante groups, they will make some arrests.
“My plea to you is that if they cannot give us a command in Ekiti State now, because I don’t know the budgetary provision for that, we need a Forward Operating Base (FOB) as soon as possible,
“Whatever it is going to take, as a government, we will provide because announcements must be made to strengthen the security architecture of the state and give the people some respite.”
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Ekiti Caucus at the National Assembly and Senate Leader, Mr. Opeyemi Bamidele, said that the recent situation in Ekiti demands a military intervention and called for immediate intervention.
“The situation in Ekiti is a further wake-up call to the nation, and I know that two days ago, we had to discuss this issue on the floor of the Senate following our discussion with the Excellency and some other stakeholders.
“In some other states like Plateau, Benue, Ekiti, Oyo, and other places, we felt it was time for us to sit down with our service chiefs in a close-door session as elected representatives of the people, to ask questions, get some briefings and clarifications, and even get educated as to where things stand.” Bamidele said.
Reacting to their demands, the Chief of Defence Staff, General, assured the Governor that the Armed Forces would do all within her power to track down the perpetrators of the crimes that occurred in Ekiti State.
However, just like the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) in the North, the Chief of Defence Staff said the army is ready to work with the local security network, stressing the need to leverage technology, the establishment of state-community police, the introduction of animal ranches, and others.
“We do not have enough manpower on the ground, so we always have to make do with the locals. I was in the North East, and we used the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF), and they gave us lots of support. We put them on contracts on a renewal basis, and we were able to monitor them.
“If we see anyone misbehaving, we have to remove such an individual; this brings out the issue of community policing; it is very critical,” General Musa added.
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Also, Oyebanji had closed-door meetings with the Chief of Army Staff, Major General Taoreed Lagbaja, at the Nigerian Army Headquarters and with the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, at the Force Headquarters also in Abuja, in continuation of the discussions on the strategic intervention of the security agencies in the Ekiti matter.
Based on the outcome of the meeting, the governor assured the people of Ekiti State that the state would become uninhabitable for criminals, adding that the perpetrators of crimes in the state would be fished out.
