Osun monarch canvasses death penalty for corrupt people, others

A traditional ruler in Osun State, Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdul-Rasheed Adewale Akanbi, has strongly canvassed the death penalty for corrupt Nigerians and those who engage in kidnapping and rituals.

The monarch maintained that the killing of corrupt people, kidnappers and ritualists by the Nigerian government would discourage citizens from going into corruption and would also solve challenges of banditry and insurgency.

Oba Akanbi stated this, yesterday, at a farmers/herders summit in Iwo on security challenges and the way forward.

He said when the government accepts the recommendation for killing corrupt people, human rights groups should not go against it, stressing that it is the only veritable means of tackling challenges the nation’s battles.

According to the monarch, “there must be a death penalty for kidnappers and no human rights advocate should kick against that. Government must begin to kill corrupt people irrespective of ethnicity. They could be Hausa, Yoruba or any tribe.

“If the security forces cannot enforce the law, then there would be anarchy. Ritualists, corrupt people and kidnappers should be killed henceforth.

Meanwhile, the monarch has urged the Fulani, who live in his domain, to work with constituted authority and traditional rulers to identify criminals who are penetrating their ranks.

Oba Akanbi, who also called for the recruitment of more policemen, community policing, granting of constitutional roles to traditional rulers and devolution of powers concentrated at the centre, further said: “Security challenges will be significantly solved if the government gives traditional rulers constitutional power. I also prefer devolution of power and not restructuring. Then, we also need state police.”

“Government must recruit more policemen. Nigeria must become a police state.”