The Inspector-General of Police, Muhammad Adamu, on Tuesday in Osogbo said the Police have concluded strategies to take the war to the hideouts of bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements in the South West.
He maintained that no effort would be spared to dislodge gunmen, kidnappers and bandits who have constituted threat to peace and security through their nefarious activities, saying “we are ready to wage war against bandits and other criminals by flushing them out of the forests and their identified hideouts.”
Adamu made this disclosure while fielding questions from journalists shortly after paying a courtesy visit to the Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola at his office, located inside Bola Ige House, State Secretariat, Abere.
Giving more details on the outcome of the security summit held in Ibadan on Monday, the Police boss said they came up with resolutions to send special forces who are indigenes to their localities so as to help augment the efforts of the commissioners of police within the region.
According to Adamu, “we are specifically ready to target the forests where there are bandits and kidnappers so that war can be taken to their den before they strike.
“It was also resolved to work with other securities; more or less like vigilantes to work with us and fight crime as the governors have pledged to continue to support law enforcement agencies in their fight against crime by buying vehicles and other logistics so as to support the fight against the crime.
“I am delighted to note that the strategies jointly developed between the strategic community actors and the Police which are currently being implemented have been effective in addressing the identified security threats in the geopolitical zone.
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“This is evident by the fact that since the meeting, the rate of these crimes has not only dropped drastically, several bandits have voluntarily renounced crime, submitted their weapons and released several victims that had hitherto been kidnapped and held in their camps across the Zone.”
In his remark, Oyetola reassured the people of the state of effective security of lives and properties, stressing that the IG and other top security chiefs were on top of the situation.
Describing Osun as the most peaceful state, Oyetola said he would use everything within his constitutional powers to ensure that the people of the state sleep with their two eyes closed by providing all the necessary apparatus.
Oyetola stated “the visit of the IG is to reassure our people to take security very seriously when you see the number one police officer in the state that shows that he’s particularly concerned about the issue of the security. I also want to reassure our people that the IG is on top of the security situation in Nigeria. The police is doing very well, the police in our state are equally doing very well.
“In our capacity as a state government, we would try to support the police in terms of logistics and other things like that. This is to reassure our people that we are safe and we want to continue to be the number one safest state in Nigeria,” Oyetola added.
Earlier, the IGP, who also visited the headquarters of the Osun State Police command explained that “we have rejigged our effort to ensure that miscreants that carry sophisticated and other types of weapons around would no longer have peace of mind in all the state of the federation.
“We are aware of the shortage of men and this is the reason the Federal Government approved the recruitment of 10,000 men every year to cover for the shortage. This year’s exercise is ongoing, it is not suspended, the process is going on and will soon be completed.
“The cadets have written test, completed the physical fitness exercise after which they would be taken to the police college to complete the process,” Adamu asserted.