Alleged herdsmen invasion: Avoid spreading fake news, Fayemi urges Ekiti residents

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi on Wednesday urged residents of the state to avoid spreading unsubstantiated reports that could truncate the current peace being enjoyed in the state.

The governor’s advice was coming few weeks after the people of Orin-Ekiti, Ido/Osi local government area of the state took to the streets to protest alleged invasion and hoisting of flags in the community by suspected Fulani herdsmen.

Fayemi who spoke while giving his statewide broadcast on the celebration of the new year 2020 said the government was doing everything possible to nip in the bud all criminal tendencies across the state.

He called on the people to report all strange movements in their localities to the appropriate authorities for necessary actions, adding that, “we must resist the temptation to resort to self-help at any time.”

According to him, the security arrangements by the South West states called ‘Amotekun’ would be launched January 9 which he said would further help to enhance the protection of lives and property in the region.

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He said, ” The primary assignment of every responsible government is the security of lives and property of the citizenry. I have personally kept a close watch on the security situation within and around Ekiti State, and I can assure you that as a government, we are leaving no stone unturned to ensure the safety of lives and property in our dear state.

“Ekiti remains one of the safest places to live, work and conduct business in Nigeria. The fact remains, however, that criminality cannot be totally eradicated even as we are working meticulously at reducing it to the barest minimum in Ekiti State, and the evidence is there for all to see and acknowledge that we are making steady progress. Since we are not an Island, we are also working with neigbouring States to strengthen our security architecture.

“On January 9, 2020, the Western Nigeria Security Network known as Amotekun shall commence operations in all the six States in our zone and Ekiti is very active in this initiative which will go a long way in securing the people and protecting the state.

“Henceforth, I urge our community leaders or groups not to allow themselves to be used to spread fake or unsubstantiated news with a view to setting the residents against themselves or destabilizing the peace of the state. We must encourage our people to report any strange signal or incident, but we must resist the temptation to resort to self-help at any time.

“I enjoin you all to stay calm and hopeful as we build on the moderate but visible success so far recorded after restructuring our security architecture. I urge you to have faith in the ability of the government to secure your lives and property, and avoid any action that can trigger unnecessary and avoidable rancour amongst our people.”

Fayemi assured that his administration has mapped out strategies towards the transformation of the state across all sectors, soliciting more supports from the people.

“This year promises to be better as we are set to witness rapid improvement on our infrastructures to accelerate our economic recovery and make life more meaningful and comfortable for our people. We are hitting the ground running immediately with the inauguration of laudable projects in the next few days. Please come along, as we jointly actualize the Ekiti State of our dreams,” he said.