THE herdsmen who have made the country a vast killing field for years are at it again, killing and maiming at will. The face of terrorism in the country, the herdsmen have once again returned to highways in the South-West geopolitical zone, committing horrendous crimes. From Ondo to Oyo, and from Oyo to Ogun, there is palpable fear of attacks by the felons. And fears are mounting as they appear set to make the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Nigeria’s busiest road, a nightmare for travellers. This month alone, there have been three reported cases of attacks by this band of blood-thirsty killers. For instance, on January 8, the outlaws struck at the Onigaari axis of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, killing a commercial bus driver identified as Oluwatosin Aruwajoye and abducting five of his passengers. Another passenger, Ibrahim Tiamiyu, was shot in the thigh.
Sensing the dangerous presence of the herders, the slain driver had reportedly tried to manoeuvre his way through, but was immediately shot dead at close range. Police operatives from the Oyo State Police Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Squad and the Toll Gate Police Division moved to the scene and rushed the injured victim to hospital. They then combed the bush in a move to rescue the victims and apprehend the perpetrators. The kidnappers later placed a call to a female relation of one of the victims based in Lagos, demanding a hefty ransom. Sadly, just eight days after that incident, the outlaws struck again, kidnapping three victims at the Ishara-Remo axis of Ogun State. Said to be about 10 in number, the criminals reportedly emerged from a bush along the road, clad in military camouflage and shooting sporadically at vehicles and their occupants.
While some, including Bimpe Akintunde, a Nollywood actress who provided details of the event on her Instagram page, were able to escape, some members of staff of an unnamed company who were returning home after attending a ceremony were captured by the kidnappers as one of the three vehicles conveying them broke down and the other two waited for the affected vehicle to be put back in shape. The repairs were still being carried out when the outlaws suddenly emerged from a nearby bush. The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident, saying that the command’s anti-kidnapping unit, vigilantes and hunters had begun combing the bush to arrest the perpetrators and rescue the victims.
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To say the very least, the abduction and killing incidents on the Lagos/Ibadan expressway are disheartening. They lend ample credence to the belief that while doing its level best to shoot down the quest for state policing, the Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has no solution to the pervasive insecurity across the country. Truth be told, the attacks by herdsmen have been stoking tension across the country for years and may lead to unimaginable consequences in the nearest future. Sadly, people without any involvement in the series of dastardly crimes by these nomadic terrorists may be caught up in the conflagrations provoked by their actions. It just cannot be an acceptable state of affairs that some criminals have been given the latitude to kill at will and put the resolve of the Nigerian State to test simply because the extant political arrangement in the country is perceived to be in their favour.
Reacting to the latest incidents, many have taken the Oyo and Ogun State governments to task, particularly over the operations of the Western Nigeria Security Network (WNSN) codenamed Amotekun. But it is difficult to suggest that these state governments are not committed to the safety of life and property in the areas under their control on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. The truth is that Amotekun, which has often not enjoyed the kind of support it needs from the other security agencies, cannot do the job alone. Besides, as presently constituted, it does not yet have the resources to combat the terror that the herders pose on the highways, which is not to say that it is precluded from making an effort. The herders deploy sophisticated weapons and Amotekun has to be similarly equipped to stand a realistic chance of combating them.
In such a situation as presently obtains on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, modern governments deploy helicopters and drones, as well as ground forces. This is why the governors of the South-West states must equip Amotekun with modern technology and gadgets while prevailing on the National Assembly leadership to pass the necessary legislation authorising state police and proper equipment and mobilisation of its personnel with sophisticated arms and ammunition. In the meantime, they should ensure that Amotekun is effectively mobilised to deliver optimum results. They should also strive to iron out whatever differences exist between the outfit and other security agencies, particularly as they are all ideally working on the same goal of keeping the country safe and secure.
There is no doubt that with their activities over the years, the herders are intent on complete elimination of members of other ethnic groups in the country and the seizure of their ancestral lands, meaning that the states of the country must have properly equipped state police forces to arrest the situation. The current situation reflects Nigeria’s defective security architecture and must be addressed holistically. Security of life and property is the primary function of the state. On their part, residents of the communities on the highway must maintain a vigilant outlook at all times. Their lives depend on it.