The Chairman of the SouthWest Governors’ Forum and the Governor of Ondo State, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, on Sunday, maintained that the SouthWest security initiative, Amotekun, is neither a regional army nor an ethnic agenda aimed at obliterating and undermining national cohesion.
Akeredolu, speaking through his Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr Donald Ojogo, said the security outfit was initiated to complement the efforts of the conventional internal security agencies that appear to have been hampered by the absence of local intelligence gathering architecture.
According to him, Amotekun when fully operational would serve the purposes of local information and intelligence gathering for processing and usage by the conventional security agencies, saying Amotekun is, therefore, merely supportive and not a replacement for the nation’s security agencies.”
Akeredolu, however, advised against divisive statements and utterances that are capable of compromising the genuine intentions of the SouthWest governors.
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He said: “The concerns expressed by individuals, agencies of government and several stakeholders are noted without bias. Where possible, the inexorable efforts of the SouthWest governors will be deepened through the relentless interface,” the governor said.
“The on-going discourse on the issue of Amotekun must not be misguided, used as a platform to ventilate personal or group views aimed at oiling primordial sentiments and grievances. Ethicising the current situation is even more unhelpful. There should be no reason for such.
“This is more so that the Amotekun scheme is not targeted at any non-SouthWest ethnic group just as its benefits are to be reaped by all Nigerians irrespective of ethnic or religious placements”
The Chairman of the SouthWest Governors’ Forum, however, expressed confidence that the SouthWest governors will not capitulate to blackmail either from within or outside the region, saying they are ready to pursue the Amotekun security scheme through all permissible political and legal means.
“Under circumstances of the nature of Amotekun, the choices are numerous. They range from prevarication and pretence; partisanship and sycophancy as well as moderate and complimentary steps not inimical to the corporate existence of our Nation Nigeria.
“The SouthWest governors have chosen the latter. In unequivocal terms too, each of the choices has a consequence, if not consequences.
“Unfortunately, the steps of SouthWest Governors have unwittingly, had to contend with forces of conspiratorial silence and unpretentious moves of sabotage. Each has a right to choices; but certainly, no one individual can circumvent the consequences of whatever choices he or she makes in life.”
The governor who stated that his commitment to the security outfit said he will not be perturbed by the statement that he was championing the initiative to secure his second term in office and said “this is far from the truth because Akeredolu is on the path of national cohesion through collaborative internal security.
“The decision taken in respect of Amotekun was in the interest of the entire nation but not the SouthWest alone. The political insinuations and blackmail are the required ingredients needed to make it credible. But such will not discourage the governor in any manner.
“Expectedly, there are possibly, political vultures waiting to reap from an imaginary scenario, especially as we approach the 2020 Ondo governorship primary of our great party.
“For Governor Akeredolu, everything that is desirable must be blessed by God. 2020 is a year that will be decided by the people of Ondo State; it can only be directed by God and His Will alone shall prevail.”
The statement read further “In words and in deeds, Akeredolu will not sacrifice the compelling need to make lives safer in the SouthWest on the altar of political convenience, comfort and partisanship. The welfare of the people must come first.
“It, therefore, suffices that Governor Akeredolu considers more compelling, the need to institutionalize an acceptably complimentary and more enduring security framework in the SouthWest.
“For those who have chosen to impose deceitful contentment on themselves for sake of political ambitions, especially towards Ondo 2020, the choice is free for them to make.
“The people are conscious and enlightened enough to discern the undercurrents; and more importantly, the consequences of those choices are lurking in the corners of our collective psyche, waiting to unleash on all of us.
“Of all vices, deception is dangerous. It becomes most lethal when it graduates to hypocritical humility and pretentious cooperation.
“It must be stated that Akeredolu, not oblivious of human imperfections that are not peculiar to him, prefers to live life accepting who he is and loving it rather than pretending to be what he is not.
“It is imperative to state here that where true glory takes root and even spreads, all false and coloured characters like flowers, shall wane and will be unable to stand the vagaries of societal test. Such, like counterfeits, do not last long.”
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