In Ogun State crime rate has dropped palpably. In the last quarter of the year, particularly in the month of December, there were no reports of violent crimes – bank robbery, murder, car snatching, shoplifting burglary, highway robbery among others.
And save pocket of cases of assault and stealing and kidnapping of former Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Dr Jasper Peter Akinola, Ogun State may be said to have enjoyed crime – free December.
Akinola who is the immediate past Head of the Anglican Church and also ex – President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) was kidnapped along with his daughter and driver last December 24 opposite the entrance of the Peter Akinola Foundation Centre for Youth Industrial Training at kilometer 10 near Obada – Oko along Abeokuta-Lagos Expressway around 3pm but the Police rescued them unscathed seven hours later .
Even the Bankers’ Committee in the state acknowledged that the waves of crimes have subsided significantly during their end-of-year Dinner and Awards’ night in Abeokuta compared to what obtained in previous years where banks operating in Ijebuland, Sagamu and Ilaro area of the state literary closed shops for weeks while GTBank locked its Ijebu – Ode branch for almost a year.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) branch Controller, Abeokuta, Mr Adewale Joawo, who acknowledged this, said the resolve of the State government and the security agencies regarding provision of adequate security within the state and the “resultant reduction in the crime rate,” had afforded the banks the enabling environment to carry out their mandate uninterrupted.
Joawo then urged the Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun to “sustain the effort” while the Bankers’ Committee conferred an Award of Excellence on the Commissioner of Police in Ogun, Mr Ikemefuna Okoye, for efficient policing of the state.
Explaining the reduction or drop in crime rate in the state in the last one year, particularly during the yuletide, the Police Public Relations Officer in Ogun, Mr Olumuyiwa Adejobi, ascribed the development to the commitment of the Police leadership and the management in the state coupled with the help of the state government in providing logistics support.
Adejobi said: “Crime rate usually goes up every December but what we have in Ogun State now is far better off than what we had last year. It is far, far better off and it is what people can see because save petty crimes such assault and stealing which one cannot ordinarily eradicate in its entirety, there is no record violent crime either bank robbery, robbery, even the ATM robbery attempt at the premises of Crescent University was foiled, one person was arrested, the only major one was the kidnapping of the Rev.(Dr) Jasper Peter Akinola but he was later rescued along with his daughter and driver.
That is another example to let you know that the crime rate had not gone up here.
“Things that have helped us to keep the crime rate quite low is the leadership of the police in the state – the Commissioner, Ikemefuna Okoye and the management team, are accessible, intelligent and full of initiatives, they think of things and make sure we have adequate security arrangement in the state.
“The leadership qualities they have, they have been able to penetrate all strata of the society starting from other security agencies.
“The CP heads the monthly security forum including the state’s traffic agency where they brainstorm on effective policing of the state. He relates well with members of the society, the CP believes in community policing, he goes to the grassroots to meet the village heads and by this, people have come to see the police as accessible people.
“It has corrected the erroneous impression that the police are hostile people, people feel more comfortable relating with the Police. This is boosting our robust intelligence driven policing. People now see giving police vital information as part of their civic responsibility. It is this information giving by the public that helped the rescue efforts on Dr Akinola.
“Police relate with the state government for effective use of equipment and facilities, deploy and supervise men to man strategic places for desired result.
The Police Public Relations department programmes sensitizing and educating the public on the right step to take to either prevent crime or fight it are also working.” On the kidnapped and rescued former Primate of the Anglican Church, Adejobi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), told The Nation that passers-by alerted the police few minutes after the kidnapping act was carried out, adding that the police are still searching for the suspects and the vehicle belonging to Akinola.
Adejobi said:” Passersby alerted us about five minutes after the crime, the caller said Baba has been kidnapped now, now. In fact I may say I was the first to be contacted. It is not up to five minutes the Baba and the vehicle were taken away that a call came. The information started spreading, everybody including the Commissioner of police moved to ensure that Baba is rescued alive.
“ I know that the target of the suspects will be the border so, I quickly informed the people at the border, I told Federal SARS, I told the state SARS, I notified the FIIB at the border, DPO in Idi Iroko, DPO in Imeko and Area Commander in Ilaro.
“These are the places where you have border towns, I told them what was happening. A man on his own came and gave us information about the details of the vehicle.
“Fortunately for the Police, when they (suspects) got to a point they started firing, the police now concluded that they were the suspects but the police were mindful of the fact that Baba might be inside the vehicle and should the police fire, it could turn out to be fatal and useless rescue operation.
“Maybe the suspects thought the road was not safe and of course, their informants on bike they planted along the way had notified them the Police were everywhere, that was how they decided to abandon Baba between one police point and another, we knew they were moving towards the border, they abandoned the driver and daughter in another location.
“We believed they may not have crossed the vehicle to neighbouring country of Republic of Benin because of the tight security mounted around the area. Whatever be the case we are still looking for the vehicle. Our operation discovered Baba and picked him. They started moving and later another team discovered. Baba’s daughter and the driver and brought them to Abeokuta.”
