Ogun/Oyo initiative on security is a welcome development

Insecurity, no doubt is one of the problems confronting Nigeria today. The country is bedevilled with various forms of security challenges, ranging from kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, serial and ritual killers, financial crimes to cultism. The level of insecurity in the country has gone to an all time high and this has made governments to […]

Insecurity, no doubt is one of the problems confronting Nigeria today. The country is bedevilled with various forms of security challenges, ranging from kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, serial and ritual killers, financial crimes to cultism.

The level of insecurity in the country has gone to an all time high and this has made governments to adopt stringent measures against criminal elements.

One is happy to note that Ogun and Oyo states have taken the issue of insecurity very serious. To nip the menace in the bud and ensure that their respective states do not become havens for criminals, the two governments few days ago met in Abeokuta to synergise and come up with practical measures in tackling insecurity, especially in their border areas.

At the meeting, Governors Dapo Abiodun and Seyi Makinde agreed to form a joint security task force, as well as a high-level joint security committee, that would proactively provide the needed security to the border communities and roads linking the two states.

One of the duties of the committee, when it begins operation, is to train and reorient members of the task force on their operational rules to guard against unwholesome practice, which is synonymous among members of security agencies in the country.

While one is happy with the latest development, the fact that officials of both states will meet regularly to provide oversight, review progress and take necessary action or actions and in most cases, jointly collaborate on emergencies and attend to distressed calls on highways crisscrossing the two sister states, is something to be commended. This would allow not only for sharing of experiences among officials, but would also give travellers and other road users confidence while on the roads.

Since security is the responsibility of all, one is happy that the governors thought it wise that apart from installing Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) on the interstate highways, they also mandated a joint task force to be set up to effectively engage, cooperate and collaborate with all stakeholders like the government at the centre, states, traditional and religious institutions and community development associations. The engagement of these groups would not only ensure that they get necessary inputs, but also the needed support that would improve securing in the two states.

The meeting of the governors to find a common solution to the security challenges facing their states is a right step in the right direction. It goes to show that the formation of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (the DAWN Commission) by the six states that make up the old Western Nigeria is yielding positive results.

The collaboration between Ogun and Oyo states is coming barely a year after a similar step was taken by the Ogun and Lagos state governments to work together for the benefit of their people.

While commending this partnership, we hope that it would achieve its aims. I want to urge the two state governments not to allow this lofty idea to be only on paper, but work towards its realisation. In the same vein, state governments in other parts of the country can take a cue from this by collaboration to put in place security measures that will allow their people to sleep with their eyes closed.

Elijah Udofia, Laderin, Abeokuta