The residents of Omi Adio, an urban and rapidly growing community between Ibadan and Abeokuta, have been without a police station for over eight years. But it recently got a modern and befitting police station. OSEHEYE OKWUOFU reports
Many residents of Omi Adio, the sleepy town in Ido Local Government Area of Oyo State would not want to remember the bloody violence that led to the burning of the only police station in the area over eight years ago.
It was a day when scores of people were killed in a faceoff between men of the Nigeria Police and angry residents. They engaged themselves in a shootout which resulted in many casualties.
A resident, Alhaji Abinukan Lasisi who witnessed the violence in 2007 relived the ugly incident. He said: “A ranting policeman accused of snatching the wife of a commercial bus driver, beat and detained the bus driver on alleged frame-up charges. But eventually, the driver died in the police cell.
“This triggered violent protest among the commercial bus operators, and resulted in the burning of the police station.
“The angry drivers were later joined by street urchins who engaged in open confrontation with policemen.
“Acting on self defence, the police, in carrying out the directive of the then Commissioner of Police to shoot at sight, shot at and killed many innocent people.”
Ever since then, the large population of Omi Adio have lived without a police station. They were dependent on the Apata Police Station, some 20 kilometres away from the town.
As a result, security of lives and property have become a source of serious concern for the inhabitants as men of the underworld rule in the community, with free reign of terror on the people.
Hooliganism and thuggery among the youth became a common phenomenon. Many hideouts for criminals also exist, especially in some areas where teenagers openly smoke what is suspected to be Indian hemp as part of recreation.
Also, the commercial life of the people was not spared as reports of robbery and social menace filled the air.
For banks and other financial institutions, transacting business in an environment devoid of security became risky.
Surprisingly, there is no single bank or micro-finance institution in the city because of the absence of police station and other security outposts in the whole of the town.
This explains why industries find their way out of the town, and why economic growth is stifled over the years.
Southwest Report gathered that some banks that opened initially never stayed longer before they closed shop due to frequent cases of bank robbery.
At present, the residents still have to cope with incessant activities of hoodlums, burglary, land snatchers, theft and domestic violence that became unbridled.
However, peace-loving residents recently heaved a sigh of relief when the construction of a modern police station in the city began some years back after over eight years of being without a security post.
Sitting on a two plots of land, the new police which was conceived by the then chairman of caretaker committee of Ido Local Government Area, Prof. Joseph Adeniyi Olowofela has been completed and fenced.
While the people are anxious to see the police station become operational, some leaders in the community have decried the delay by the government to inaugurate the station for the purpose for which it was built.
According to one of the traditional chiefs who spoke on condition of anonymity because of security implications, the residents are still wondering why the police station which has been completed almost a year ago has not been put into use.
He said:”Many things are happening that have been negatively affecting the development of Omi. Where there is no security, there is no development and that is true in the case of Omi.”
Speaking on the development of Omi Adio, the Balogun Olomi of Omi, Chief Mukail Adebayo described the city as a commercial hub nub of Ibadan, Abeokuta and some other surrounding towns.
He said many traders in the Southwest geo-political zone source their foodstuffs and agricultural produce from the ancient Omi Market which has been in existence for centuries.
He described the security of the town as normal in a rapidly developing society, but called on the government to make security of lives and property a priority.
“We used to have a police station here until the sad incident happened. But we are grateful to the former chairman of the local government, Prof. Olowofela who saw the need to build a befitting police station for the town. I hope that the government will soon inaugurate the facility so that the people will enjoy a measure of security. This is a centre of commerce. Don’t forget that Omi is between Ibadan, the largest city in West Africa and Abeokuta, an ancient city too.
“So, there is a great influence of both cities on the livelihood of Omi Adio community because we always see people migrating from one city to the other and the influence of those cities actually rubs off on the life of the community. Essentially, we have people who engage in commercial activities as their means of livelihood.
“We also have technocrats and civil servants. Because of the nature of the place, majority of the people are either traders or farmers,” he said.
For Prof. Olowofela, the unfortunate incident that led to the burning of the police station in 2007 shall never happen again.
He recalled that in 2007, there was a fracas in which many people lost their lives and some hoodlums burnt the police station in Omi Adio.
“However, during my tenure as chairman of the local government, we recognised the importance of a police station in a rapidly growing community such as Omi Adio and the fact that Omi Adio is also very close to the boundary between Ogun and Oyo states which is bakatari. We felt that we should build a police station at Omi Adio.
“And we contacted the Executive Governor of Oyo, Senator Abiola Ajimobi who gave us the resources to complete that. I am quite confident that any moment from now, the police station would be transferred by the Oyo State Governor to the Commissioner of Police so that they can effectively take over the place for the purpose of policing the community,” he said.
Olowefela, a Prof. of Physics also sees Omi Adio as a peaceful town and a place which holds a lot of promises.
He said: “Do not forget that the Nigerian Mining Corporation established by the Federal Government was in Omi Adio because of the abundance of kaolin in the locality and Adio Railway Station was famous in the olden days. The railway station was used for commercial activities whereby people can move their goods from the hinterlands to Lagos and so on and so forth. So, it’s a good community. It boasts hospitable people and it’s very accommodating. The fact that it is situated between two major cities is an advantage to the community. You will find out that many people from Ibadan city are building their houses here in Omi Adio. So, it’s a rapidly developing area.”
As the state government and police authorities meet on the transfer of the newly built police station, expectations are high on the part of the people who anxiously await the return of security post which they hope will further drive socio-economic development in the ancient town.
