The Oodua Unity Group has decried the pervasive insecurity across Southwest Nigeria and parts of Kogi and Kwara States, saying that the situation calls for decisive action from governments at all levels.
It specifically called for local government and state policing as a lasting solution to the hydra-headed challenge of insecurity in the region.
Rising from a consultative meeting of its leaders on the state of the nation yesterday in Lagos, the group lamented that persistent insecurity of lives and property across the region is now negatively affecting the economy and livelihoods of residents.
In a statement by its Communication Secretary, Kola Aare, the Yoruba interest group noted that the situation had become so bad that people now feel unsafe travelling on roads, going to their farms, or even sleeping at night in some communities.
The group explained that the cumulative result of this is untold hardship on the people.
“Our people can no longer go to the farms for fear of being kidnapped. And when a few take the risk to go to farm, the produce arrives the market expensive price. Bad road networks, which make it difficult for commuters to easily move from place to place or transport goods, also contribute to this.
“When you go to parts of Ogun State, Oyo and Ekiti States, and some Yoruba-speaking parts of Kogi and Kwara States, farmers find it difficult to go to farm because of the high level of insecurity. The situation has become so worrisome, and we cannot continue to fold our arms,” Aare said.
The group listed some of the hotbeds of insecurity in the region to include Imeko Afon, Alagbede, Iwoye, Tobolo, and Ilara areas of Ogun State; and Ikole, Ikere, Igbara-Odo, Itapaji, Eyemoro, Ijan, and Ilumoba in Ekiti State.
Other areas mentioned include Baba Nla, Bororo, Osi, and Oro in Kwara State, and some Yoruba-speaking parts of Kogi State like Oko-loke, Ejiba, Egbe in Yagba West, Odo-Ape, and Ole-bunu in Kabba-Bunu Local Government.
The group stressed the need for communal effort among residents and urged heightened vigilance within communities to reduce incidences of insecurity.
It also called on the federal, state, and local governments to urgently implement concrete measures to stem the tide of insecurity in the region.
