• Ogun to document foreigners, scavengers, others for security purposes
• Afenifere, Yoruba Leaders of Thought task govs on state police, Amotekun, others
• ADP calls for probe into possible external interference in worsening insecurity
• Nigeria at crossroads, research group warns, seeks urgent ethical, security reforms
• Military moves to modernise intelligence
Declaring that “the time is now” for state police, South-West governors yesterday announced sweeping regional security measures, including a dedicated security fund and real-time intelligence network, signalling a coordinated front against escalating criminality and renewed pressure on the Federal Government to decentralise policing.
This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the Forum’s meeting held at the Executive Chamber of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.
Present at the meeting were the Deputy Governor of Osun State, Mr Kola Adewusi; Governor Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti); Governor Seyi Makinde (Oyo); Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos); Governor Dapo Abiodun (Ogun); and Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo).
The communiqué was read by Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who said the governors had “extensively deliberated on agriculture, economic development and the security challenges affecting the South-West.”
The Forum expressed strong support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, commending him “on the fight against insecurity, various economic reforms and other developmental agenda.” It also expressed solidarity with the Federal Government over the recent kidnappings in Kebbi, Kwara and Niger states.
According to the communiqué, “the Forum applauds the swift response of the Federal Government towards the rescue of the Kwara abductees and more than 51 students of the Catholic school in Niger State.”
After reviewing the security situation in the region, the governors approved the establishment of the South-West Security Fund (SWSF). The communiqué stated:
“The Forum agreed to set up a South-West Security Fund under the DAWN Commission, to be administered by the Forum of Special Advisers on Security of all South-West states, and to meet monthly.”
The governors also resolved to establish a digital intelligence-sharing platform to facilitate real-time communication across the six states. “This platform will exchange threat notifications, incident logs, traveller and cargo alerts, and coordinate state-to-state rapid response,” the communiqué noted.
Concerned about the proliferation of criminal hideouts in forest belts, the governors urged the Federal Government to take urgent action.
“The Forum calls on the Federal Government to note the urgent need for enhanced forest surveillance across the South-West,” it stated.
They further recommended the deployment of Forest Guards across the region, saying: “The Federal Government should help deploy Forest Guards, with each State Government responsible for providing the required personnel.”
The Forum raised the alarm over unregulated interstate migration, describing it as “a significant challenge.” It said the states would intensify border monitoring and work with NIMC for proper identification of migrants to prevent worsening insecurity.
On illegal mining, the communiqué stated: “The Forum expresses deep concern over the escalating illegal mining activities which threaten environmental safety, public health and regional security.”
It called for “a comprehensive licensing framework, strengthened monitoring mechanisms and strict enforcement actions against violators.”
Reiterating its long-standing position, the Forum declared: “The time is now. State police can no longer be delayed.”
The governors commended farmers for increased agricultural output, noting that improved harvests had contributed to “stability and a reduction in food prices.”
They also thanked President Tinubu for establishing the South-West Development Commission (SWDC), saying: “The Commission must effectively deliver on its mandate.”
The DAWN Commission was similarly praised for its “activities on regional integration and security.”
Concluding, the Forum enjoined citizens to remain united: “We remain one, indivisible entity that will continue to enjoy and guard the religious tolerance for which we are known,” the communiqué said.
Military moves to modernise intelligence as threats grow more complex
The Chief of Defence Intelligence (CDI), Lt-Gen Emmanuel Undiandeye, has said the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) is intensifying efforts to harness technological innovations and human intelligence capabilities to meet Nigeria’s national security objectives.
He spoke yesterday in Abuja at the 2025 Chief of Defence Intelligence Annual Conference, themed “Multi-source Intelligence Innovation in a Challenging National Security Ecosystem”. The event was attended by senior defence intelligence officers, Nigeria’s defence attachés and advisers in various countries, regional directors and state coordinators.
Undiandeye said Nigeria’s security landscape remains “dynamic and complex”, with insurgency, terrorism, banditry and organised crime persisting across several theatres. He noted that although security services continue to display courage, professionalism and resilience, the current environment requires a more multi-dimensional and multi-agency approach to intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination.
He emphasised the need to strengthen integration across multiple intelligence sources — human, signal, open-source, imagery and data — to improve institutional awareness and support timely decision-making.
“Therefore, multi-source intelligence lies at the heart of our ability to anticipate, dictate, and neutralise emerging threats, integrating information from diverse domains: military, democratic, economic, technological and socio-political, which enhances our capacity to generate actionable intelligence,” he said.
He added that innovations in data analytics, artificial intelligence and interagency information-sharing would help create a unified national intelligence framework capable of supporting strategic and operational decisions.
Undiandeye said the DIA had begun several reforms aligned with this vision, including digitisation of intelligence processes, enhancement of special and cyber intelligence capabilities, and the establishment of specialised task groups to improve collaboration with other intelligence and law-enforcement agencies. These initiatives, he noted, were designed to ensure intelligence outputs remain timely, relevant and comprehensive.
He explained that integrating artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics into intelligence work had become indispensable globally, as the sheer volume of information generated daily exceeds the capacity of manual analysis. The DIA, he said, was committed to embedding these technologies across its operations to secure a decisive advantage.
Ogun to document foreigners, scavengers, others for security purposes
Meanwhile, Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun, yesterday announced new security measures to safeguard the state in the wake of rising banditry, terrorism and other violent crimes across the country.
Abiodun said the state would immediately begin the documentation of all foreign nationals working with multinational companies in Ogun, particularly those without proper records. He added that new non-indigenes entering the state would undergo screening by their community leaders to verify their identity, purpose of visit and means of livelihood.
Speaking with journalists in Iperu after an emergency security meeting, the governor said the move formed part of a proactive strategy to strengthen surveillance and safety across the state.
He disclosed that security agencies had arrested about 70 foreigners, mostly from the Niger Republic, Sudan and Chad, within the last four days after they failed to provide credible reasons for their presence in the state.
“The law enforcement agencies have arrested about 70 persons from Chad and Sudan who cannot speak English and cannot explain what they are doing here. We are processing them with the Nigerian Immigration Service.
We are also calling on our non-indigene communities to be more vigilant, so we know who is here and why they are here,” he said.
Abiodun expressed fresh concerns over the activities of scavengers, noting that many of them now constitute a major security threat. He said security agencies would intensify monitoring and engagement with scrap dealers to ensure they are not being used to facilitate criminal activities.
He explained that Ogun’s strategic position as the country’s industrial capital, with over five million commuters moving in and out of the state daily, requires constant vigilance and swift preventive action.
The governor directed the police to immediately move into enclaves such as “Zanga” in Ijebu-Ode and similar settlements across the state and clear out criminal hideouts. He warned that properties used for criminal activities would henceforth be confiscated by the government.
Commenting on the recent tension at Ajebo in Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area, Abiodun said security operatives had visited the settlement and confirmed that the inhabitants posed no threat. He also assured that forest reserves across the state would be thoroughly secured to prevent criminals from using them as bases.
He noted that the security meeting also deliberated extensively on illegal mining and the infiltration of miscreants into mining sites. According to him, the state government is working with security agencies to flush out criminal elements from mining locations and forest zones.
The governor appealed to residents to support security agencies by reporting suspicious movements and providing credible intelligence.
“Security is not the responsibility of security agents alone. We must work with them and report anything suspicious so they can respond promptly. We must be observant and be our brother’s keeper,” he said.
Abiodun warned traditional rulers, especially Obas and Baales, against allocating government land to strangers without due process, stressing that any traditional ruler found culpable would be held accountable.
He commended security agencies for the synergy that has helped sustain peace in Ogun and lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for stabilising the economy and ensuring the swift rescue of kidnapped victims in Niger and Kwara states.
Afenifere, Yoruba Leaders of Thought task govs on state police, Amotekun, others
Also, the apex socio-political organisation in Yorubaland, Afenifere, said the governors should impress on all legislators from the region to begin pushing for the establishment of state police in the country.
Reacting to the governors’ meeting held in Ibadan, the group’s spokesman, Jare Ajayi, said that although the meeting was timely and commendable, the governors must go beyond rhetoric and actively pursue the creation of state police.
Afenifere lamented that the rate at which insecurity is spreading from the North toward the South, through Kwara, Kogi and parts of Ekiti, has become worrisome.
The group also urged the governors not to make the meeting a routine gathering but to impress on President Bola Tinubu and their states’ representatives in the National Assembly to deploy concrete strategies to tackle insecurity in the region.
Afenifere further stressed the need for the governors to strengthen the Amotekun security outfit.
Another group, the Yoruba Leaders of Thought, led by Prince Tajudeen Olusi, welcomed the meeting but cautioned that it must not end as a mere talk shop.
The group urged South-West governors to ensure the deployment of modern technologies in the fight against insecurity.
The group also urged the governors to take the profiling of strangers across the region seriously. It expressed concern over the infiltration of the South-West forests by foreign elements who, it alleged, now commit crimes from within these forests.
According to the group, “One of the major strategies to curb insecurity in the zone is to ensure that all forests in the South-West are cleared of foreign criminals.”
It further called on the governors to take proactive measures to address the proliferation of commercial motorcycle operators.
The group added that it is incumbent on South-West governors to investigate the motive of individuals and sponsors who procure commercial motorcycles for unfamiliar persons operating within the region.
ADP calls for probe into possible external interference in worsening insecurity
The Action Democratic Party (ADP) has urged the Federal Government to investigate the possibility of external involvement in Nigeria’s escalating security crisis, warning that the scale and sophistication of recent attacks suggest a coordinated effort to destabilise the country’s democracy.
In a statement issued by its National Chairman, Yabagi Yusuf Sani (Jakadan Nupe), and signed by the National Publicity Secretary, Dr Sani Dawop, the party said recurring assaults on schoolchildren, worship centres, security formations and rural communities can no longer be attributed to “ordinary banditry”.
The statement followed confirmation by Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of the release of 38 worshippers abducted at Christ Apostolic Church, Eruku, in Ekiti Local Government Area, and reports that 50 of the 303 schoolchildren recently kidnapped in Niger State had escaped—one of the largest mass abductions in the country’s history.
While welcoming the release and escape as a relief to affected families, the ADP said the repeated and widespread nature of such incidents raises serious concerns about internal sabotage and external influence. It cited suspicious withdrawals of security personnel before attacks, persistent intelligence failures, expanding operational capacity of criminal networks and patterns indicating deliberate coordination.
The party posed several questions that it argued Nigerians deserve answers to: Who funds the armed groups? Who are their local collaborators? Why do attacks continue with such impunity? Why are security responses often delayed or compromised? And which foreign interests might be directly or indirectly fuelling the instability?
The ADP said Nigeria must take seriously escalating warnings from foreign leaders, geopolitical tensions across the Sahel and the rise of proxy conflicts in the region, arguing that these developments make it urgent to examine whether external actors are exploiting the country’s vulnerabilities.
“Enough is enough,” the statement said. “Nigerians must rise to defend Nigeria and democracy.”
Nigeria at crossroads, research group warns, seeks urgent ethical, security reforms
The Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics Ltd/Gte has urged urgent national action to address rising insecurity, corruption and the misuse of religion, warning that Nigeria “stands at a crossroads” as these challenges continue to undermine the country’s stability.
In a statement titled “A Call to Action: Rebuilding Nigeria’s Future Through Ethics and Unity”, the organisation said Nigeria remains “a nation blessed with immense potential” but is held back by “a crisis of ethics, fuelled by insecurity, corruption, and the misuse of religion to perpetrate violence.”
“Banditry, insurgency, and kidnappings have left communities shattered, while distrust in institutions deepens,” the group said. “We cannot build a prosperous future in the midst of fire.”
The organisation stressed that Nigeria’s challenges “are not as a result of faith, but stem from failure of responsibilities,” saying greed, division and impunity have been allowed to flourish while places of worship, meant to be sanctuaries of peace, are “overshadowed by the cries of the vulnerable.”
The Alliance outlined a series of actions for different sectors, beginning with the government, which it urged to “enforce laws without fear or favour,” prosecute offenders linked to violence, corruption and hate speech, and strengthen the nation’s security architecture by equipping troops, supporting state police and enhancing community policing.
It also called on authorities to invest in education and job creation, promote transparency by publishing budgets, ensure accountability and tackle corruption within religious institutions.
Religious leaders were urged to preach peace, reject extremist rhetoric and lead by example through humility and service. Citizens were encouraged to demand accountability, reject corruption and promote unity across ethnic and religious divides.
The group also advised politicians to place the nation above personal interests, end political violence, stop arming militias and support reforms addressing the root causes of insecurity, including injustice and unemployment.
ADC: Withdrawal of police from VIP duty political drama, not security reform
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has dismissed the Federal Government’s directive withdrawing police protection from Very Important Persons (VIPs), describing the move as political grandstanding that fails to address Nigeria’s deepening insecurity.
In a statement by its spokesperson, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said the decision amounted to “mere drama” and reflected a lack of understanding of the complexity of the country’s security challenges.
The ADC argued that similar directives had been issued repeatedly without implementation. “In 2025 alone, such an order has been given twice by the IGP, whom we believe was acting on the directive of the President. But nothing happened,” the statement said.
It added that even if the withdrawal were implemented, redeploying police officers would not significantly improve national security because many of them are “ill-suited and ill-equipped” for counter-insurgency operations.
“Therefore, the dramatic gesture of withdrawing police protection from VIPs may pander to populist sentiment, but it does not address the problem,” the party stated.
The ADC questioned the government’s claim that the measure would free up 100,000 officers, saying the numbers “do not add up”. It argued that Nigeria’s challenge is not policing strength but the inability of security forces to match the sophistication of insurgents and criminal networks.
The party also criticised the government’s decision to replace police personnel assigned to VIPs with personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, noting that the corps’ mandate focuses on disaster management, community protection and public safety education.
“What the country needs is not the reshuffling of personnel for headlines, but a coherent national security strategy anchored in modernisation, intelligence, and institutional integration,” the ADC said.
HURIWA says school closures amount to surrender to terrorist ideology
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the recent closure of schools across the country, describing it as a capitulation to the ideology driving terrorist groups opposed to Western education.
Last week, the Federal Government ordered the shutdown of 41 unity schools over rising insecurity and the abduction of pupils. Governors of Kwara, Plateau, Niger, Benue and Katsina states also directed the closure of schools in their domains.
HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, said the decision amounted to an admission of defeat by the government, noting that Boko Haram had spent the past 13 years attacking civilian and government targets to advance its anti-education ideology.
“What the FG and state governments have just done by hurriedly closing down public boarding schools across the country and in many northern states is a collective acceptance of defeat to the terrorists,” he said.
Onwubiko questioned what actions federal and state authorities had taken since the first major school abduction in Borno State nearly a decade ago. He also criticised the handling of the Safe Schools Initiative, for which he said significant funding had been allocated.
He asked: “What exactly did the Federal Government and the states in the federation do since the first case of mass abductions from schools? What has government done with the budgets approved for the Schools Safety Initiative, which the central government informed Nigerians that the government of the United Kingdom donated money for? What is the fate of millions of school children displaced by the thoughtless, irrational and cowardly decision to shut down schools?”
APC faults claim that Tinubu ‘surrendered’ to terrorists
The Lagos State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed allegations by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has “surrendered” to terrorists, describing the claim as baseless and irresponsible.
In a statement yesterday signed by its spokesman, Mogaji Seye Oladejo, the APC accused the PDP of “intellectual laziness” and desperation to remain politically relevant.
The party said the successful rescue of the 38 abducted worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State, along with ongoing efforts to free remaining captives, was proof of effective leadership and not surrender, as alleged by the opposition. It said the PDP had resorted to politicising insecurity because it “thrives on hardship”.
The APC argued that the Federal Government’s temporary closure of schools in high-risk areas was a “strategic protection measure”, accusing the PDP of preferring to expose children to danger for political points.
The ruling party highlighted President Tinubu’s recent decisions, including cancelling a foreign trip to personally coordinate security operations and initiating reforms in the defence sector, saying these demonstrated his commitment to securing the country.
It questioned the PDP’s credibility on national security, saying the party lacked the moral authority to criticise government measures after allegedly allowing Boko Haram to expand, losing territories to terrorists, negotiating ransoms and presiding over mass abductions during its 16 years in power.
Police debunk herdsmen attack rumour after panic at Delta school
Tension rose in Kwale, headquarters of Ndokwa West Local Government Area of Delta State, yesterday after students of Otagba-Ogbe Girls Secondary School fled their classrooms over fears of an alleged herdsmen attack, a claim the police later dismissed as false.
The panic began when students saw two herdsmen enter the school premises from the back, triggering a stampede that spread alarm across the community. A community source said the fear was fuelled by weekend rumours that herdsmen had been sighted near the school.
“Today, as they were learning, two herdsmen entered the school compound from the back,” the source said. “Whether they were looking for their cattle, I don’t know.”
As news circulated online, claims of gunshots and an imminent attack intensified the anxiety, prompting parents to rush to the school to retrieve their children.
The Delta State Police Command, however, swiftly refuted the rumours, calling them “entirely false and misleading”. The Commissioner of Police, CP Olufemi Abaniwonda, ordered immediate verification, and the Divisional Crime Officer of Kwale Division, SP Udofia Kufre, led a patrol team to the school.
Interviews with the Vice Principal and the security guard confirmed that no attack occurred and that the commotion was caused solely by fear and misinformation.
Police also visited nearby schools in the Kwale area and found them calm and fully engaged in academic activities.
Authorities urged parents to remain calm, assuring them that normalcy had been restored. CP Abaniwonda warned against the spread of unverified information, saying it could trigger public panic and disrupt learning.
He reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to protecting schools and responding swiftly to credible threats, advising administrators to strengthen communication, report suspicious movements promptly and work closely with security outfits to improve surveillance around educational institutions.
