Insecurity Menace: Kwara South Youths Talk Tough, Demand Military Deployment
The need for Federal and State Governments to rise to their constitutional duty of protecting lives and property has been stressed.
A coalition of Kwara South Youth Groups, consisting of Igbomina Youth Assembly (IYAss), Kwara South Youth Development Organisation (KWAYORG), Kwara South Consultative Youth Forum (KSCYE), Kwara South Students Union and Kwara South community-based youth associations who bemoaned the situation made the call at a press conference held on Friday at Omo Ibile Igbomina Secretariat, Ganmo, Kwara State.
While lamenting the spate of insecurity in Kwara South, particularly in Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state, the acting President of Igbomina Youth Assembly, Engineer Olugbenga Ajibola emphasized that as a matter of urgency, there is need for heavy deployment of military forces to dislodge bandits and restore peace in all the affected communities.
“This must include a full military base in the affected axis, and not just occasional patrols; including treating emergency security operations as a matter of national urgency, with military surveillance, air support, and combing of forests where terrorists are hiding: provision of modern arms and logistics to community hunters and vigilantes who remain the first line of defense for our people”
He noted that if government and other relevant authorities fail to act decisively, it could not only erode the heritage and economy of Kwara South but also destabilize the entire state and Nigeria at large.
The youth President also called on government to declare a 12-hour curfew from dusk to dawn in the most affected communities to allow military operations to flush out the criminals.
In another demand, Engineer Ajibola also advocated the creation of a Joint Security Task Force comprising federal, state, and local authorities, with youth representatives to ensure coordinated response and accountability.
He further urged the Federal Government to introduce swift intervention programs aimed at rehabilitating displaced persons, rebuilding destroyed communities, and curbing mass migration.
“With farmers displaced, a major food crisis looms, threatening not only Kwara State but also urban centres across Nigeria that depend on Kwara South for agricultural produce”
“The Kwara State government, under Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the Federal Government, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must understand that what we face in Kwara South is nothing short of terrorism. We, therefore, demand military presence”
In his remarks to journalists, the President of the Kwara South Consultative Youth Forum, Comrade Gabriel Omoniyi, appealed to the State Government to intensify efforts in safeguarding lives and property.
Also speaking, KWAYORG President, Prince Abolarin Dansarafa who described the situation in Kwara South as nothing short of terrorism, appealed to members of the National Assembly and other political office holders from the Senatorial District to join forces with the State and Federal Governments to nip the menace in the bud so that residents could be at rest and go about their normal businesses without any sort of intimidation.
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He however urged political leaders from the region to unite and contribute meaningfully towards resolving the security challenges confronting their senatorial district.
