Aiyedatiwa, others canvass state police to tackle security challenges

Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has joined the growing call for the creation of state police as part of the critical solutions to the security challenges facing the country.

According to the governor, the present policing structure has proven to be inadequate amid the complex and evolving security issues.

Aiyedatiwa, who disclosed this at the ongoing Annual General Conference of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) in Lagos, assured that the South West Security Network, otherwise known as Amotekun, has come to stay in the state.

The governor, who was chairman of the event, delivered a lecture at the Breakout Session on Ondo State tagged “Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu Leadership Series: Is State Police a Solution to National Insecurity?”

While emphasising that Amotekun, which was established by his predecessor, would be funded to improve its operations, Aiyedatiwa stated that the country’s central policing system “has failed to shield us from the marauders, who strike fear into the hearts of our citizens. It is limited in its capacity to bring to justice those who have turned our highways into death traps, and our farmlands into killing fields.”

He added: “Interestingly, a glimmer of hope emerged from the heart of Ondo State with the birth of the Western Nigeria Security Network, known as Amotekun Corps.

“Under the visionary leadership of my late principal and former governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, in collaboration with his fellow governors in the South West, this groundbreaking home-grown initiative evolved. Amotekun has soared to unprecedented heights, becoming a shining example of the transformative power of state-level security.”

The governor, who commended the NBA leadership for organising the session, urged other states of the federation to replicate the Amotekun model ahead of the establishment of state police.

Also speaking, the Commander of Amotekun in Ondo State, Adetunji Adeleye, reeled out the achievements of the security outfit in recent times, thanking the governor for continuing with the legacy of his predecessor in the adequate funding of the agency.

On his part, the NBA President, Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, SAN, commended Aiyedatiwa for his thought-provoking lecture, stressing that the Bar would support the call for state police.

Other speakers at the session, including human rights advocate, Femi Falana, SAN, also commended the Ondo model of Amotekun, urging the Federal Government to heed the call of Nigerians for the creation of state police.