By Adeyinka Adeniran
Chairperson of the Oyo State Rule of Law Enforcement Authority (OYRLEA), Justice Aderonke Aderemi (rtd), said the government has been working hard towards ensuring that residents of the state comply with established regulations, which make them live in a peaceful and safe environment.
She stated that the Authority, established in 2024, was put in place to enforce existing laws relating to environmental protection, traffic management and open grazing, noting that it has achieved a level of success in ensuring order and peace in the society.
Aderemi, who stated this on Monday while participating at the Omituntun 2.0 Inter-Ministerial Briefing, said the Authority has addressed thousands of cases on road traffic management and the environment, while it has also curbed open grazing in many instances.
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She clarified that the Authority deals with simple crimes and offences such as enforcing the rules to achieve a clean, safe and orderly environment in line with Governor Makinde’s policies, rather than taking over the statutory functions of the High Court and the Ministry of Justice.
The chairperson said that the Authority has put in place tribunals, which are strategically positioned to prosecute those apprehended, just as counsels are available to defend suspects, who can also apply for bail depending on the degree of offences committed.
She said that offences attract jail terms and option of fines for offenders or lawbreakers.
She said: “The Authority deals with misdemeanours, that is, simple crimes. The Authority does not deal with in-depth crimes, like murder. If anyone commits murder, they will have to be taken to a regular High Court. Ours is to clear the road and deal with simple offences.”
The OYRLEA chairperson maintained that since the Authority was established, it has made moves to create awareness and sensitise members of the public on its activities, noting that the body has featured on several media programmes and also met with local government chairmen with a view to ensuring that the people at the grassroots are familiar with the new sheriff in town.
She added that the Authority has also carried out sensitization against street-trading at Bodija and Bola Ige International markets, among others.
According to Justice Aderemi (rtd), the OYRLEA set up two Tribunals, which have tried 6,000 traffic offences from September 2024 till date as well as 3,000 environmental offences.
She noted that in order to achieve success, her Authority has been collaborating with different MDAs and organisations, including OYMASED, Amotekun Corps, the military, Operation Burst, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the Legal Aid Council, among others.
Highlighting some of the successes of the Authority, Justice Aderemi (rtd) said its efforts have helped in curbing open grazing, farmers-herders clashes across many locations and the elimination of shanties around public schools.
She said: “We were able to settle the farmers-herders’ crisis at Ido. People wrote petitions to us and we dealt with the issue. This is how we address farmers-herders’ issue; when the farmers report to us, what we do is to go there to investigate. We know when the herders would come out with their cows. The law says you must bring evidence. Isn’t that so? So what we do is that even if it is as early as 5 a.m., we will go there waiting with the Enforcement Team. Once they come out, we arrest them. We’ll arrest the cow, even if the herders run away. The cows cannot get away that fast. That is what we have been doing.
“Once we arrest the cows and we bring them down, the herders will show up and want us to release the cows to them. And, if they fail to show up, we sell the cows. The law permits us to sell the cows. That is what the law says. And, once we sell the cows, we give the money to the farmers, because their farms have been destroyed. That’s what the law says.
“If we arrest the cows and they are with us for seven days, after seven days, those cows have to be sold. But if they are in court, we have to wait because the judge will have to give judgment first. But, after the judgment and the herders refuse to come to claim the cow, we will sell the cow and use the money to pay compensation to the farmers. That is what we are doing now.
“I can tell you that many farmers are coming up, as we are dealing with a lot of petitions. We are going to Ogbomoso, Saki and Eruwa. We are travelling all over the place now. Once you tell us, you know I said see it, say it and we will sort it out.
“Once we know what is happening anywhere in Oyo State, within our own jurisdiction, we are ready to go. We will be there to sort it out. So, people should go back to the farms.”
Fielding questions from newsmen, the OYRLEA boss said the Authority has ensured strict compliance with the rules, including fundamental human rights and rights to fair hearing, among others.
“I said we are collaborating with Legal Aid and with the Nigerian Bar Association. Why we have to collaborate with them is this; if we arrest anybody and the person tells us he doesn’t have the means to pay for a lawyer or he doesn’t even have a lawyer and he needs one, he quickly turns to the NBA, they will produce a lawyer for that person on a pro bono basis. The person will not have to pay or we will go to Legal Aid Council.
“You know the work of Legal Aid? It’s great, and they deal with the situation as well. So, we don’t have problems like that. And, we have lawyers prosecuting the cases, Magistrates sitting at the Magistrate Court and then the lawyers are there. So, there is always fair hearing.
“Also, if you say you don’t understand Yoruba, then definitely there will be an interpreter there. Like the herders, we get the interpreters to interpret what we are saying in court to them,” she added.
She noted that the Authority has also participated in training officers from the Oyo State Road Maintenance Agency (OYRTMA), the Oyo State Environmental Task Force and the Amotekun Corps.
Justice Aderemi (rtd) also said that after the state government demolished shanties built into fences of schools, some individuals had begun to rebuild those shanties, warning that such people would be dealt with, if apprehended.
She said that Amotekun posts would be mounted in some schools to ensure the safety of students and conducive environment for learning.
Justice Aderemi (rtd) was accompanied to the briefing by the Secretary to the Board, Mrs K. k Olosho-Olayiwola; Chief of Staff to the Chairperson, Mrs I.E Akinbode; and Acting Director Administrative and Supplies, Mr Toyin Aluku, among others.
