By Adeyinka Adeniran
In its bid to address the growing tension over influx of bandits and terrorists into the region, Oyo State government said it is concluding arrangement to incorporate local government chairmen as well as traditional rulers into its security network.
This the government said would be part of efforts to hold an expanded security network meeting with relevant stakeholders in the state.
Additionally, the state said it will be strengthening efforts and synergy with neighbouring states so that the bandits would not have any hiding place in the region, a move it said would help to secure its borders and guard against influx of bandits.
The Special Adviser to the Governor Seyi Makinde on Security, CP Fatai Owoseni (rtd) said the decisions forms part of resolved reached at the Security Council meeting.
He said Governor Makinde presided over the meeting.
Assuring the residents that the state will leave no stone unturned to ensure the safety of everyone, Owoseni noted that all hands were on deck to fish out the bandits and use the instrumentality of the law to deal with them.
He urged the people to go about their lawful activities without any fear, assuring them that the state government would pull out all the stops to secure the life of everyone in the state.
Owoseni expressed optimism that, with the robust synergy among the security agencies in the state, the bandits and other criminal elements had nowhere to hide.
Owoseni said, “The essence of this is to ensure that we take security to the grassroots. The local government administration is the third tier of government and is the closest to the people. In the same vein, traditional rulers are close to the people and know most people in their domains.
“By integrating them into the security network, we are taking security to the grassroots and carrying everyone along. Security is everybody’s business and we all have a role to play in ensuring that our state is safe from the antics of bandits and other criminal elements.”
He said that the Council also discussed the issue of decongesting correctional centres, adding that the state would invoke its power of prerogative of mercy to set free some of the inmates.
Similarly, the Council discussed the issue of the health and wellbeing of inmates of correctional centres with a recommendation that they should be enrolled on the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme to ensure that they have access to good healthcare.
“A decision on the health insurance scheme for correctional centre inmates would be taken at one of the subsequent Council meetings,” Owoseni said.
