When the six governors of the Southwest states of Oyo, Ondo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Lagos converged on Ibadan, its regional headquarters, for strategic security deliberations during the week, they were taking a cue from the wisdom of their forefathers during the pre-colonial and colonial days.
Then, kingdoms were being conquered and chiefdoms subdued. Land and crowns were factors in the inter-tribal wars of yore. But later, the sea and the economic advantages it conferred on Yoruba land drew the envy of some powerful warmongers from distant tribes.
Yoruba, the vast territory of the then Alaafin, came under siege. The tormentors depended on the powers of their horses, spears, bows, and arrows. They coveted the land they saw flourishing with the best of nature. Few among the Yoruba warriors had horses too. They could only face the onslaught with Dane guns, cutlasses, and well-crafted sticks called ponpo. Both sides were also known for possessing charms.
Everybody’s attention, from Lagos to Akoko, Igbomina to Egba, Ebolo to Ijebu, and Oyo to Ondo, was in the war of resistance. Led by the brave Ibadan warriors, the Yoruba of Ekiti, Oyo, Akoko, Remo, Ijebu, Igbomina, Ijesa, Popo, and Isabe put their minor differences aside and confronted their common enemy, who wanted to annex their fatherland and impose an alien religious and political administration on their towns and villages.
It was the battle of Osogbo in 1840 when the ambition of the jihadists to expand their territory collapsed. The Yoruba army from Ibadan was strengthened by their strong will, capacity, unity, and resolve to preserve their identity, their history and heritage. The soldiers fought with ideas and knowledge, propelled by the desire to defend their nation with the last drop of blood. The rest, as it is said, is history.
Politically, the Southwest of today is not one, but the threat to the zone does not discriminate. It is gratifying that the Southwest Governors’ Forum (SGF) is proactive. This is not a time for rhetoric. The governors, like their illustrious grandsires who took their destiny in their hands, are taking the bull by the horns. But speed is required as any further delay could jeopardise the existing arrangement.
If the ideas canvassed by its former leader, the late Rotimi Akeredolu, had seen the light of day, the region would today boast of a formidable regional security outfit capable of rising to the occasion.
Nevertheless, the legacy of Amotekun has endured, reminding potential interlopers of a resistant apparatus that can marginally withstand a dosage of security challenges in regional interest.
Governors Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos State), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo), Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti), and Ademola Adeleke (Osun), who was represented by his deputy, Kola Adewusi, were in sober reflection, conscious of the fact that the region can only sleep on guard to its peril.
The Yoruba kith and kin suffer in Eruku and Isapa in Kwara State, which is contiguous to Ekiti, Ondo, and Osun. It is a signal that danger is looming in the neighbourhood.
The governors know that the bandits are not Yoruba. The total agenda of the evil men is unknown but bold. There is concrete evidence suggesting that the kidnapping business is booming. Others insinuate that the region’s vast natural endowments are the targets. Yet, others speculate that banditry and terrorism come with a message of religious subjugation. The Yoruba are the most religiously tolerant people with attendant peace across the region. They would never allow the merchants of chaos to occupy an inch of their land for a purpose that breaches the ethos of the region’s religious finesse.
If the identities of the bandits, their sponsors, sources of funding, and other motivations are known in some quarters, it would be relatively easier to devise solutions.
Yet, these cannot be said to be too hidden in a troubled country where some people have boldly come out to present themselves as negotiators and advocates of amnesty for terrorists and other known killers. The basic fact is that those who have pushed the country into a war have internal collaborators who maximally profit from insurgency.
Compared to other regions, particularly the three northern zones, there is relative peace in the Southwest. The zone has plans for regional progress and prosperity, and the people look forward to the commencement of operations by the Southwest Development Commission, which is expected to be a model to its counterparts in the remaining five regions.
The peace in the Southwest, therefore, should not be allowed to be compromised. The region is one, unique, and indivisible entity with a history of political accommodation and religious tolerance. The cohesion of the region is underscored by its conglomerado, Oodua Investment, jointly owned. Other regions can only copy this primal model.
What Sanwo-Olu and his compatriots have done is to embark on a bold, pre-emptive, and strategic move to forestall terrorism incursion into the Southwest from the contiguous region.
If there is a crisis in Ekiti, Ondo, or Osun, it has implications for Lagos, Oyo, and Ogun, and vice versa. That is why the leaders are mobilising ideas and resources to invest in prevention instead of cure.
That Southwest is now setting up a Regional Security Fund under the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission is salutary. The initiative is just beginning to catch up with the proposals envisioned by Lagos State over a decade ago. Nigeria should acknowledge the reality that a regional security outfit, once halted by the Muhammadu Buhari government but now bolstered by the right technological equipment, can indeed make a difference.
This proposed regional security architecture, backed by a ‘Joint Security Intelligence Sharing and Communication Platform,’ would enhance early detection of threats, strange movements, and intended onslaught. The establishment of a live, digital intelligence-sharing platform among the six states would also enhance a collective surveillance due to the exchange of threat notifications, incident logs, and traveller and cargo alerts, resulting in a coordinated state-to-state rapid response.
Also, an improved forest surveillance by the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), hunters, Amotekun Corps members and other security agencies is likely to flush out criminals who hide in the bushes.
Terrorists do not strike without first spying on the targeted environment. They plan and assess their chances of escape ahead of carrying out their evil enterprise. Thus, vigilance is key.
Since the Southwest is ready to provide the required personnel, the Federal Government should not wait any longer before deploying the forest guards.
In the Southwest are strange faces, including herders whose identities and missions are unknown. There is freedom of movement, but this emergency time calls for the regulation of interstate migration, as proposed by the governors. If not well checked, it could actually snowball into a conduit for insecurity. As highlighted, it would involve stricter border or boundary monitoring, data collection and self-identification. This is why each of the six states would now work with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) for proper identification.
A contributory factor to banditry is the porous borders. Over 1,000 of them are unguarded, serving as easy routes for systematic invasion by foreigners who come in to torment Nigerians in their land. Some of the foreigners are involved in illegal mining activities, which “threaten environmental safety, public health and security”.
If there is a comprehensive licensing framework, monitoring mechanisms, and strict enforcement actions, as proposed by the governors, violators who want to perpetrate violent crimes under the guise of mining would be effectively checked.
There is also the policing of the land, which is a critical issue. Almost three decades ago, the Southwest led the way in the clamour for restructuring and decentralisation of the security apparatus. Under the Buhari administration, the governors established a regional security outfit that was watered down by elements who uncritically perceived it as a signpost to regional autonomy within the federation.
The presidential nod for the creation of state police has validated the claim of critics who have pointed out that the current defective and centralised policing structure is inadequate for a vast federal country like Nigeria. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s position on the issue makes state police optional. But it is an answered prayer for the six governors who are now expected to seize the opportunity, following the accelerated constitutional review by the National Assembly.
It also implies that at the state level, more Southwesterners would be recruited, trained, and deployed within their region of birth to provide security and have a sense of patriotism and emotional attachment to their region and the nation-state.
The anticipated constitution review is to pave the way for multi-layered policing. The relationship between the centralised and state police would have to be determined, and measures to guard against abuse at the sub-national level put in place.
The Southwest appears to be rising to the occasion and the governors deserve the support of all and sundry – traditional rulers, who once lost four members to banditry in Ekiti; religious leaders whose colleagues have been victims in the North; security agencies who deserve continuous praise for facing the fire on the battle field; corporate organisations that need a conducive atmosphere to thrive; community development associations, and youths who are the future leaders of the nation.
