- How security outfit restored peace in Ibarapa, others
- Says we’re capable of combating Boko Haram
Insecurity has been a major challenge in the country for some time now with the Southwest region not left out. In arresting the insecurity in the region, the Western Nigeria Security Network, codenamed Operation Amotekun was founded on January 9, 2020 by the governors of the six Southwest states, the introduction of Amotekun has changed the security architecture of the region. GBENGA ADERANTI looks at how Amotekun has brought relative peace to the Southwest.
The security situation in Ibarapa, a conglomeration of highly agrarian communities in Oyo State, was so worrisome at a time that its inhabitants were sleeping with their eyes open. Kidnapping, armed robbery and attacks by killer herdsmen were the order.
While the situation was barely better in many other parts of the Southwest, it was so bad in Ibarapa that it virtually became a crime to be affluent. All it took to become a victim of kidnapping was for the kidnappers to have enough reasons to believe that you had the means to pay some good money as ransom. Consequently, both residents and indigenes of the affected communities were living in constant fear.
The ransom paid by a victim to regain freedom could be anything from N300,000 to N13 million, depending on the social status of the victim. The situation degenerated to the point that most residents of the affected communities were afraid to move around, particularly in the evening, for fear of being abducted, consequent upon which nightlife became almost zero.
Narrating his experience, Odeyemi Jide, a native of Igangan community, who had the misfortune of being kidnapped, said but for divine intervention, he could have been killed even after ransom was collected from his family members.
He said: “I was in my house around 10 pm that fateful night, having my supper and helping my child with his assignment when kidnappers came from nowhere to the front of my house. The invaders who were about 10 in number were all hooded.
“I understood their language. They were Bororo and I was hearing their conversation.
“The first thing they did was to beat me mercilessly and collect all the money in my pocket. They then shot into the air and hit my head with the butt of their gun.
“The merciless beating they gave me is the reason for the blood you see on my head in that picture. It was the grace of God that saved my life on that day. It is beyond human comprehension.”
The situation was the same on Kilometre 127 on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway sometime in 2022 when a Toyota Sienna bus heading for Lagos was reportedly attacked by kidnappers who had suddenly emerged from the bush in the area and started shooting sporadically. In the process, a commercial vehicle driver was killed.
A week after, a Nollywood actress, also shared her experience as to how she and her daughter had a close shave with kidnappers in the same axis on their way from Ibadan to Lagos.
Also on the same Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, gunmen donning military uniforms abducted seven wedding guests who had attended a wedding in Ibadan the previous day and were returning to their base in Lagos when one of the vehicles conveying them broke down on the way.
One of the victims, Folahan Akinsola, said they were trying to tow the faulty vehicle when the kidnappers emerged from the bush, held four of them hostage and demanded N60 million as ransom. He said the victims were released two days later after N7.5 million was paid.
However, there has been noticeable respite for travellers on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway with the creation of the Southwest Security Network, code named Amotekun to complement the efforts of other security agencies. It also suffices to say that the activities of the Amotekun Corps have calmed the security situation in many parts of the Southwest.
The efforts of the Amotekun corps in this regard have been widely commended, with some proposing that the bulk of the security outfit should transmute into state police.
Speaking our correspondent, Sadiat Muraina, a businesswoman in Iganna, Iwajowa Local Government Area, commended the efforts of Amotekun in bringing sanity to the otherwise ‘unsafe’ parts of the Oyo community.
Muraina said: “The Amotekun people are doing a lot. But for them, many of us would have left our communities a long time ago.
“If trouble erupts within the community and you call them, they will promptly respond.”
She said before the Amotekun corps was introduced, the local hunters were the ones providing security for the town, but the security situation became better with the advent of Amotekun. “They complemented and fortified the operations of the local hunters,” she said.
Another resident of Ibarapa, Odeyemi Jide, who was also a victim of kidnapping, described the activities of Amotekun in the area as novel.
“We now have good security in Igangan. There is no more problem here. Our new monarch does not tolerate nonsense,” he said.
Another Igangan resident, Jide Taiwo, said the presence of Amotekun in Ibarapa has had a serious impact on security in the community.
According to him, residents now sleep without any fear of nocturnal attacks, unlike before when insecurity was a serious challenge.
He, however, said Amotekun should not solely take the glory for the peace being enjoyed in the Ibarapa axis of Oyo State but share same with the army, police and the local hunters.
Taiwo noted that unlike before when marauding herders would come, attack the community at will and escape into the bush, it is now difficult to do so because the Amotekun corps are not far from the forests in the area.
Taiwo said: “I would not attribute the peace we are enjoying in the community solely to Amotekun; it is the combined efforts of the Amotekun, the local hunters and other security agencies.
“Besides the efforts of Amotekun, the residents are more security conscious now. They report any form of security threat promptly.
“We have enjoyed a good security atmosphere in the community in the past year.”
Another resident, Alhaji Yekini, who two years ago was released by kidnappers only after a ransom was paid, also believes that the Amotekun corps are doing wonders in the area.
According to him, things have been different since the outfit started operation and the fear of being attacked has ceased.
Also speaking with our correspondent, Oyebisi Akinloye, the Coordinator, Ibarapa North Amotekun, attested to the view that Amotekun has made a serious impact on security in the community.
“Since Amotekun came into being, the security of lives and property has improved,” he said, adding that the success of the security outfit cannot be divorced from the Oyo State Government’s efforts in meeting the needs of the corps.
“The criminally minded herders have been flushed out and we have peace. The Fulani people living among us are good people. They are cooperating with us,” he said.
Reacting to the popular view that the marauding herders have superior weapons, he said: “If you are on the path of truth, irrespective of the caliber of guns those kidnappers and criminally minded herders have, we will prevail. The presence of Amotekun has brought peace to Ibarapa.”
While the security situation in the Southwest cannot be said to be excellent, there is no gainsaying the fact that Amotekun has played a major role in bringing sanity to that part of the country.
Those who ply the Lagos-Ibadan routes regularly would attest to the ubiquitous presence of Amotekun corps and the fact that the efforts of the security outfit have manifested in the reduction of crimes on the expressway albeit with the cooperation of other security outfits.
Anyone who has had the misfortune of being robbed by the marauders on the Southwest roads would admit the necessity of Amotekun. And the brains behind the idea would most probably be proud of its impact.
Founded on January 9, 2020 by the governors of the six Southwest states, namely Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Ekiti, its formation was informed by the threats to lives and property as most of the major roads had been taken over by criminal elements. Today, the Southwest is arguably the safest region, thanks to the security network and the resolve of the governors to take the security of the region into their own hands.
They have successfully complemented the efforts of the Nigerian police whose number is too low to tackle the ever rising crime rate in the country. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the number of policemen in the country declined to 250,276 in 2022. The foregoing was contained in the internal security chapter of its “2023 Social Statistics Report”.
According to the report: “The total number of police officers in 2020 was 213,709. The number increased to 250,461 in 2021 and decreased to 250,276 in 2022.”
‘Make Amotekun Corps integral part of state police’
As a way of making the security outfit more effective, Corps Commander, Amotekun, Osun State, Brig. Gen. Biodun Bashir Adewinmbi proposed that members of the Amotekun corps should constitute the nucleus of the proposed state police.
According to him, the security outfit is already doing the work of state police.
“When you talk of state police in the western part of Nigeria, Amotekun should be modified to state police,” he said.
He warned that without incorporating the corps into the proposed state police, the idea would be defeated.
”Amotekun is a regional police; they should just convert that to state police; they should modify it. Some of us are ready for state police,” he said.
According to him, the Southwest already has the model of state police.
He said: “We have been doing our job in maintaining effective community policing. Just give the Amotekun a place to continue. We are already doing the job of state police in the various states in the Southwest region.
“Anything short of that will not make any sense to state police.”
For the state police to function effectively, Adewinmbi advised that it should be separated from the national police. “Let the state police be given to the governor as it is currently being done in the southwest of Nigeria,” he argued.
Giving kudos to the Amotekun corps in Ondo, he said they have the needed equipment, noting that no new state police can do better. “The gadget they have, no state police can have,” he said.
He advocated that rather than allow a retired police officer to head the new state police, the government should engage retired army generals because, according to him, “they do not condone nonsense, they know what to do at the right time, and they will not compromise on standard.”
Taming excesses of state police
The argument against state police in certain quarters is that it is prone to abuse. But the Osun Amotekun boss, while dismissing the notion, revealed that politics and security are miles apart.
According to him, just as there are laws that guide the activities of Amotekun, laws should also be promulgated to prevent state police from being abused by governors. Those would be the laws guiding the use of Amotekun or state police.
He revealed that during the last election in Osun State, Amotekun was not allowed to take part.
He reiterated: “State police should not be allowed to participate in any election. There should be a law forbidding governors from using state police, which will make people have confidence in them.”
He said but for Amotekun, the security situation in the Southwest would have been worse.
Said he: “Osun is the most peaceful state in Nigeria today. If not for Amotekun, it would have been a different story entirely.
“In terms of effective community policing, we are on the ground. We know ourselves, and we have profiles of criminals and profiles of different militia groups. Without Amotekun, it would have been worse than this.
“No policeman goes into the forest. It is Amotekun who goes into the forest to fish out hoodlums. It has happened in Ondo, it has happened in Oyo. We pursue criminals to the forests in our territory.”
Unfortunately, while criminal elements carry sophisticated weapons, Amotekun corps members are restricted to pump action guns. Adewinmbi, therefore, called on the government to allow Amotekun to possess sophisticated weapons that could match the ones possessed by criminals.
“At least AK-47 is not too much for Amotekun. If they want to start state police, they should permit them to carry sophisticated arms. All other military establishments carry.”
Investigation revealed that the Southwest has been able to enjoy relative peace largely because of the cooperation between the states in the region. For instance, the commanders of Amotekun meet quarterly to discuss the security situation.
Apart from meeting regularly, whatever needs attention, the commanders treat with urgency. Fortunately, all the commanders in the state are ex-military officers. “Our formation is very perfect. We brainstorm, we respond to security issues, and it has been very advantageous for us,” said Adewinmbi.
As a way of preventing clashes between farmers and herders, there is a committee that ensures cordial relationships between them. They meet with them regularly and tell the herders about the law that bans open grazing.
“If you want to do open grazing, don’t go to another person’s farm. Take your cows to the bush; not to another person’s farmland.
“We have been managing ourselves and it has been yielding positive results. That is why you don’t hear about herders eating somebody’s farm.”
‘Security is everybody’s business’
Also speaking, the former Field Commander of the Western Security Network Agency, Amotekun Osun, Comrade Amitolu Shittu, while acknowledging that the Southwest security outfit has been doing well in making sure that the region is devoid of any form of insecurity, also pointed out that incorporation of the corps into the proposed state police is important.
According to him, the police, army, and the other conventional security outfits alone cannot be saddled with security of lives and property. “It is a joint responsibility of the citizens and non-citizens of a country.
“It is a thing that all of us must do because the problems from marauders and criminals are not for a particular tribe.
“Their action is not targeted at a particular tribe. It is a general phenomenon.
“Criminality does not have tribe or colour. It does not have religion. It does not have big men.”
In a veiled support for state police, he advised the government to liberalise security, adding that incentives must be given to other paramilitary organisations, including Amotekun, by empowering and equipping them.
He blamed the lukewarm attitude of the government for the insecurity in the country.
He said: “The way they are handling security in Nigeria is lukewarm. Take for instance when the Chibok girls were kidnapped; the presidency did not have information about it until they had been moved out of the territory.
“Therefore, the police should map out a strategy and work with police-community relations and other paramilitary outfits to work out how best to run community policing.”
For any country to be safe, he said, all hands must be on deck, including the aged and the retirees. According to him, in Britain, for instance, retirees and the aged play prominent roles via giving information to the government as and when due.
“When they supply information at the level of the borough, they pass it to the state, and this is what is in operation. Even when I was in Japan, the same thing operated there. The citizens were willing to support the government to get rid of marauders.
Why community policing may be difficult
Amitolu told our correspondent that from experience, the hostility of the government towards community policing is fueling insecurity.
He said: “The influx of illegal migrants into our country is alarming. Those are the things we cannot do in the UK, USA, Canada, but they are doing it here and nobody is asking questions.
“I know the number of Chinese who were illegal migrants here. When I profiled them, I discovered that their international passports and their work permits had expired, but the police were pressing me to release them.
“I asked if in their country they would allow an African man to stay a day longer than the expiration of his visa. They will deport you or you could be arrested and you end up in jail.
“It is a joint responsibility. Police cannot do it alone even if you recruit 20 million of them.”
Making a case for the state police, he said the number of police is not currently enough. And to worsen matters, the majority of the policemen are engaged as guards by ‘privileged’ Nigerians.
He is appalled that the bulk of the police that are supposed to secure the lives and property of citizens have been engaged to guard politicians and other private citizens.
He said: “More than 70 per cent of the Nigerian police end up serving as private guards, either to ministers or to lawmakers.
“Let me tell you, a minister is running a unit of police; that is the number of police in a divisional headquarters is what a minister is using.
“A mere local government chairman is using about a unit of police. A parastatal that is supposed to be having an officer will have 15 and we are saying our policemen are not enough. We will never have enough.“
Asked whether an outfit like Amotekun would have made any difference in rescuing Chibok girls, Shittu said he told Borno State governor, Bababgana Zulum, that Amotekun would have made the difference if the government had engaged it.
He admitted that it would be difficult to free all the girls because some of them are married, some of them have died unannounced and some of them have given birth to four or five babies.
“So if you are clamouring for the Chibok girls you are just wasting your time. The few that can still be united with their parents, if they allow us, we will bring them out.
“But some of them are not ready to reunite with their parents again because they have married there, they are cooking for them, they are selling the looted properties from their operations. So many things are happening to the Chibok girls but the public does not understand what is going on.
“The mechanism you can use is serious engagement to rescue those that are ready to reunite with their parents. Seventy per cent of them are not ready to reunite with their parents again. What is important is to bring them back.”
Does Amotekun have the capacity to bring the girls back?
Amitolu insisted that engaging Amotekun in the battle would solve the problem.
If Amotekun has the capacity to rescue Chibok girls, how come the marauders were able to unleash terror in an Ondo catholic church?
To this, Shittu said: “Without the cooperation of an insider, there is no way a stranger will know where a blind man was buried. It was the handiwork of an insider who worked closely with an outsider.
“There is no way the outsider will know the type of soup or the type of meat in your pot. It is an insider that will give information about your operation, about your movement.
It was an insider that gave them the information they operated with.”
Like Adewinmbi, he insisted that state police are the way out.
“It is the solution to the problem we are facing in Nigeria in terms of insecurity,” he said.
