TheNewsGuru

Tag: Security

  • Debate on Amotekun’s legality: Compendium of lawyers views

    Debate on Amotekun’s legality: Compendium of lawyers views

    In the past week, Amotekun, the security initiative by Ekiti, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, Osun and Lagos, states that originated from the defunct Western Region, generated lots of controversies that propped up several topical issues that dominated the national discourse space in Nigeria.

    The Amotekun debate was immediately triggered when the attorney general of the federation, Abubakar Malami, asserted that the setting up of the initiative is illegal, citing specifically that by virtue of item 45 of the second schedule of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, policing and other government security services are on the exclusive list.

    This development, expectedly, did not go down well with many Nigerians and has been a subject of hot debate. Therefore, in this unsolicited but imperative legal opinion, efforts would be made to dissect the legal position of the Federal Government on Amotekun and other ancillary matters arising therefrom.

    While the initiative majorly got praised in the Southern part of Nigeria it has also attracted condemnation from some sections of the country, especially some leaders in the North, who say such arrangement was unconstitutional in a federal state and called for its scraping.

    In this report, TheNewsGuru, (TNG), compiled the views gathered from some notable lawyers to help throw light on the furore over Amotekun’s legality or otherwise. TNG positioned the centre of its compilation to answer the following fundamental questions on Amotekun: The security question and the federalism question.

    Aare Afe Babalola:

    In a statement titled, ‘No law prohibits the establishment of Amotekun,’ Babalola said, “The issue of Amotekun is an issue of public safety and protection of property. There is no law in Nigeria, which prevents citizens from being able to secure their life and property. The Nigeria Police does not enjoy exclusive jurisdiction when it comes to the protection of life and property. As a matter of fact, in many parts of Nigeria, various outfits such as Civilian JTF, Hisbah Police and vigilantes have been performing the duty of protecting life and property.”

    He added: “Given the provisions of the Criminal Code in Sections 272-275, the right of citizens to arrest any person for committing an offence is legal and may be exercised individually or communally. In any event, the regional community security outfit known as Amotekun cannot be set aside by oral pronouncement by the Attorney General or any other body. Only the court of law can declare the establishment illegal.”

    Kunle Edun, publicity secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA)

    “In civilised climes, security is everyone’s concern and not the exclusive responsibility of a particular organ of government.”
    He described Amotekun as a good and commendable initiative, noting: “Similar outfits exist in the north and they were reported to have assisted the Nigerian military to stem the tide of armed banditry and insurgent activities.”

    Edun said since the floaters of Amotekun have “promised to work with the official regular security apparatus for proper coordination and collaboration, what is needed now is collaboration and partnership on security between the southwest governors and the Federal Government.”

    Lagos based lawyer, David Fadile
    The Federal Government declaration of the Amotekun as being illegal is in order. There is no law to the best of my understanding which established this group of people known as the Amotekun nor regulate their activities within the South Western States. Society is governed by law and order. Assuming that this security groups misbehave today how do we check their excesses.

    In Lagos for instance, the activities of Lagos State Traffic Management members or groups otherwise known as LASTMA is regulated by the Lagos State Traffic Management Laws of Lagos 2015, same for Neighbourhood watch. Someone should tell me under which specific laws do Amotekun operate. I concede to the argument that the governor is the chief security officer of the state he/she governs but this constitutional provision is not at large. The 1999 constitution Section 214 stipulates that there shall be a police force for Nigeria, which shall be known as the Nigeria Police, and subject to the provision of these sections no other police force shall be established for the Federations or any part thereof. This is the extant law except and until the various Legislative Houses of the South West States legislate Amotekun into existence; their functions remain that of the Nigerian Police.

    Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, PACAC, Prof. Itse Sagay

    “I am positively disposed towards it. I think it is a good beginning not to depend completely on the Federal Government for our security.
    “We should begin to rely more and more on ourselves so that those who feel the pain are those who try to take control of the security situation.
    “We know that the Police are few; they are stretched; we have about 250,000 policemen in a country of almost 200 million. So, I think these regional security institutions are necessary.
    “I believe the police should cooperate with them and help with their training. And I believe eventually, they should even be armed so that we can have a lot more hands and local people involved in security.
    “Perhaps that can lead to other benefits, such as economic cooperation and wealth creation; and gradually, we’ll begin to regain what we lost when we lost the regions in the 60s. So, yes, I support it.
    “It’s not state police. I think the people who created it have been careful. Yes, there is a security outfit, but there is nothing in the Constitution that precludes either states or association of states from taking care of their security.
    “There is this popular saying that the governor is the chief security officer of a state. That’s not an empty statement.
    “They get a lot of money for security, and I look at this as part of the responsibility of the governors acting jointly to provide greater security in the Southwest.”

    Femi Falana (SAN)
    No doubt, section 214 of the Constitution stipulates that there shall be only one police force in Nigeria. But the federal government has breached the Constitution by setting up other police forces. For instance, the Nigerian Security and Defence Corps is another police force established by law. The State Security Service is also a police force established by law. Its operatives are well-armed. They wear masks even in broad daylight. The federal government has also authorised the officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Offences Commission, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Correctional Service and other paramilitary agencies to bear arms. To that extent, the federal government cannot stop any state from setting a security outfit. In fact, having lost control of the monopoly of violence to armed gangs in the various parts of the country the federal government lacks the legal, political and moral right to challenge security outfits set up by state governments and individuals to protect the lives and property of the people of Nigeria.
    It is pertinent to point out that as chief security officers in the respective states, governors have the power to adopt measures deemed fit within the ambit of the law to ensure the maintenance of law and order.

    Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN)
    The Attorney General does not have the power to declare Amotekun illegal. He advised Malami to go to court if he feels strongly about the matter.
    “I see no controversy about this matter. Do I need court pronouncement to engage private security guards and provide them with vehicles and uniforms? There is nothing strange in what the southwest governors did. They can see Malami’s comment as his opinion and not the position of the law, which only the court can interpret.”

    Barr Osigwe Momoh

    The security of lives and property is the principal objective of the state as copiously provided for in Section 14 of the constitution, the function is vested in the states and federal government and by implication, the president and governors of each state.

    However to avoid friction and executive overlaps the constitution has provided and empowered each unit of government each being limited and restricted to the 2nd schedule of the constitution.

    Part one of the 2nd schedule deals with the exclusive list excludes the state government from matters relating to police and military – that being the case, although no budget can be created for this organisation, nothing stops the governor in line with Section 14 of the constitution to empower citizens and organise them in a bid to stem out crimes

    Barr Gloria Ballason

    Amotekun is a creation of the South-West Governors to tackle Kidnapping and other criminal activities.

    The incidents of kidnapping and killings on farms and rural areas by persons often identified as Extremist Fulani herdsmen have particularly become worrisome.

    Curiously, while the International community through the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) has noted its notoriety as the fourth terrorist group in the world with Boko Haram as second, the Nigerian government has not recognized herdsmen Extremism as a terrorist group.

    That in itself is problematic especially in the light of the mind boggling casualties that this group has created in the Middle Belt & South West. It should be a welcome development that the South-West Governors as chief security officers of their states have taken a coordinated action to protect the territory of their influence more so as there is Civilian Joint Task Force in the North-East.

    The Attorney General of the Federation through his declaration of Amotekun as an illegal outfit clearly believes that the South-West Governors have usurped the defence item on the exclusive legislative list.

    I will argue to the contrary more so as the AGF and the Federal Government make no commitment to secure the people from the menace of kidnapping. The AGF can go to court so we can test the legitimacy of Amotekun.

  • Insecurity: Be conscious of your personal security, FCT Minister urges Abuja residents

    Insecurity: Be conscious of your personal security, FCT Minister urges Abuja residents

    The FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello, on Tuesday urged residents of the territory to be very vigilant and conscious of their personal security.

    Mr Anthony Ogunleye, Chief Press Secretary to the Minister, in a statement in Abuja said Bello gave the advice at the meeting of the FCT Security Committee.

    Ogunleye said the comprised the Heads of the Police, Military and Para Military formations in the FCT, Area Council Chairmen and religious leaders.

    The minister reiterated that the Federal Capital Territory was safe and called on residents not to leave security matters to the law enforcement agencies alone.

    According to him, it is almost impossible for security agencies to be everywhere one hundred per cent.

    ” So every resident in a way is also a security officer. it is very important for residents to be vigilant and to be very conscious of their personal security”

    ” If for instance, you see a vehicle without number plate, it means that vehicle is not registered and can be used for criminal activities, please report to the relevant authorities,” he said.

    Bello said that in comparison to several cities around the world, FCT remained quite safe.

    He said that there were two incidences of kidnappings over the past few weeks,but noted that the victims had been rescued.

    Bello also called on the residents not be swayed by rumours or unverified online news but confirm their veracity before circulating them.

    He said that fake or false news on security information had the capacity to lead to breach of peace.

    Bello, however, commended the Area Council Chairmen and traditional rulers in curbing the herders/ farmers clashes and urged them to continue on the path of ensuring peace.

    He assured residents that FCTA would continue to partner and render support to the Nigerian police, the military and para -military commands in the FCT charged with the task of keeping the city secure.

    The FCT Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Aliyu,called for synergy between all security agencies in the task of combating crime and enforcing security measures in the FCT.

    The FCT Commissioner of Police, Bala Ciroma, said that there would be more deployment of officers and men of the police across the city to combat crime.

    He revealed that the police had intensified vehicular and foot patrol to ensure more visibility of officers and men of the Force in the city.

    Ciroma said the measures had succeeded in curbing crime and criminality in the Area Councils, especially Abaji.

    He noted that information provided by the citizens of Abaji stopped kidnapping between Kogi and the FCT.

    On the menace of “one Chance”, the police commissioner said that the criminals perpetrated their acts by using unregistered and unpainted taxis.

    He said that the police were collaborating with the FCT Directorate of Road Transport Services to apprehend the criminals.

    He also revealed that a unit within the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was created, specifically, to combat one chance, adding that so far, over 100 suspected one chance perpetrators had been arrested and their vehicles confiscated.

  • Security: South East Governors approve joint air operations to flush out bandits from all forests

    Security: South East Governors approve joint air operations to flush out bandits from all forests

    …Commend Gov. Ugwuanyi for pioneering establishment of Forest Guards

    …As Aviation Minister assures standard reconstruction of Enugu Airport

    Governors of South East geo-political zone, on Saturday, rose from an expanded meeting with the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, representative of the Minister of Works, heads of security agencies at the national, zonal and state levels, Managing Director of FAAN, the President General of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, Prof Barth Nnaji, among others and resolved to commence a joint air operation to flush out bandits from all forests in the zone, “and to make it a continuous one”.

    The governor also restricted inter-state movements of herdsmen and their cattle as well as foot movement of cattle and herdsmen from communities to communities across farmlands in the zone.

    In a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting which was attended by Governors Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, David Umahi of Ebonyi State/Chairman of the Forum, Willie Obiano of Anambra State, Emeka Ihedioha of Imo State and Deputy Governor of Abia State, Rt. Hon. Ude Oko Chukwu, the forum commended Gov. Ugwuanyi for being the first to commence the operation of Forest Guards in the South East and encouraged the remaining states to launch theirs.

    The governors “banned herdsmen who move about with AK-47 guns and cutlasses” and asked security agencies in their various states to ensure the implementation.

    On Operations Python Dance, the South East Governors Forum, through its Chairman, Gov. Umahi, who read the communiqué said they “never invited the Army nor were South East Governors informed of their Operations Python Dance until the operations were already started in the states”.

    The governor agreed to write President Muhammadu Buhari for a meeting with him and all the Service Chiefs on security to douse tension in the region.

    On the closure of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, the governors disclosed that the Minister of Aviation assured them in the meeting that the airport would be reconstructed to meet the Abuja International Airport standard, adding that the runway repairs and other renovation works will be completed by December this year.

    The governor further disclosed “the Sam Mbakwe Airport in Owerri, will be given face-lift to accommodate flights that would be diverted from Enugu Airport to Owerri Airport”.

    While acknowledging the safety reasons given by the aviation minister for the closure of Enugu airport, the governors stated that “we support him for closing the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu to save the lives of our people and our visitors”.

    They therefore agreed that “palliative and security measures to be worked out between FAAN, Ministry of Aviation, South East State Governors, Security Agencies and FMoW to ease out inconveniences and make the routes safe through a joint committee”.

    “South East Governors and security agencies to patrol all routes leading to where flights will be diverted from Enugu and also provide escorts to all travelers to the airports,” the communiqué added.

    Consequently, the governors constituted two committees to interface with Ministry of Aviation, FAAN, Security Agencies and Federal Ministry of Works, while Maj. Gen. Abel Obi Umahi (Rtd.), Capt. Awa Agwu (Rtd.), IGP Ogbonna Onovo (Rtd), CP Ikechukwu Aduba (Rtd.) and Mr. Raymond Nkemdirim, were inaugurated as chairman and members of the joint security committee, respectively, to be located in Enugu State.

  • IGP orders AIGs, CPs to beef-up security nationwide

    IGP orders AIGs, CPs to beef-up security nationwide

    The Inspector General of Police, IGP Mohammed Adamu has ordered the immediate beef-up of security in all the States of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
    Zonal Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs) and Commissioners of Police (CPs) across the country have also been mandated to ensure that customized security arrangements are put in place in their Area of Responsibilities (AORs) to checkmate the activities of criminals and any possible threat to public peace.
    The Police chief said the order is imperative following the series of violent protest and unrest by members of the El-zazakky group in the FCT.
    This is contained in a statement in Abuja on Friday by the Force Spokesman, DCP Frank Mba.

    The IGP also assured citizens that proactive measures including aerial surveillance of major cities have been emplaced to ensure the safety and security of lives and property of all Nigerians.
    Adamu however urged citizens to be wary of circulating unsubstantiated security advisories capable of creating undue fear, panic and apprehension in the country.
    He also advised all intending protesters to ensure they express their grievances within the ambit of the law so as not to infringe on the constitutional rights of other citizens or cause breach of public peace.
  • Plateau FA to use police dogs, vigilante to secure matches

    Plateau FA to use police dogs, vigilante to secure matches

    The Plateau Football Association (PFA) said on Wednesday that it would use local vigilante and police dogs to secure match venues in the next season of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

    Sunday Longbap, PFA Chairman, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos.

    Longbap said the initiative was to ensure that the matches were played in rancour-free environment.

    “We are going to fortify our stadium with local vigilante, close to the people.

    “They know the people individually, and they should be able to know who is doing what during the matches.

    “We are using them as first informants of our security in the stadium.

    “Police mounting troops and dogs would also be used,” he said.

    According to the chairman, the mounting troops are good at guiding the referee at the centre, while the dogs can go after anyone that may want to cause trouble.

    Longbap said that the stringent security measure was to avoid a repeat of what happened last season.

    “We had a fracas in the beginning of last season which was very unusual. It was an unrest that tended to be political in nature.

    “We were sanctioned; we obeyed and played our homes matches outside Jos, and came back after serving the punishment.

    “We will not allow such event to happen again; we have learnt our lesson and we have come with a modality of curtailing a repeat,” he said.

    Longbap noted that the PFA would secure the stadium to a level where families could come with kids to watch matches, as done in other places.

  • We must unite to solve Nigeria's prevailing security challenges – Jonathan

    We must unite to solve Nigeria's prevailing security challenges – Jonathan

    Former President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday called for a united front against insecurity.
    Jonathan, who said insecurity appears from time to time in the country, added that all leaders must have a conversation that would end the carnage defenceless Nigerians are facing.
    “We must get the country out of insecurity,” Jonathan said while responding to questions during the public presentation of a book tittled: “Not By Might Nor By Power”, a selected messages to the world written by His Grace, the Most Rev Nicholas D. Okoh, Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of Nigeria.
    The event, which was also the launching of the Nicholas Okoh Foundation, brought together eminent Nigerians, including former military Head of State Gen Yakubu Gowon.
    But Jonathan, while speaking to journalists, said every generation has its challenges, adding that leaders must come together to address it.
    “If things are wrong, leaders, including me, we should be talking. And there are a lot of conversations going on to solve this problem,” Jonathan said, adding:
    “Every generation has its problem. In fact, my generation is almost gone. It’s for your generation and we must all come together to solve the problem.”
    “The security challenges have been with us for long, but we know that whatever is the challenge, we must come together and addressing it, The political leaders in the country and traditional leaders are talking. And we must get the country out of insecurity,” the immediate past president said.
    Rev Okoh cautioned against ethnic groups forming their own militia to stop the killings.
    “I have no solution because I am an individual. But we try to ask the appropriate authorities to do what they should do, and that is the government.
    “I strongly believe that individuals should not take security initiative. Because, if individuals take their own security initiative, by this way, I mean that we organise our own militias, the country will be destroyed,” Okoh who is due to retire next year, said.
    “Everybody will perish,” he said of ethnic groups forming their militias.
    He added: “But government that has the constitutional responsibility to maintain security should do so and quickly too before it gets out of hand. That is my appeal.”
    On why he has been speaking truth to power, the retired military officer, who joined the Anglican Church ministry and rose to the highest level, said: “It depends on what you believe to be your ministry. If your ministry represents God, God doesn’t lie. You might be poor, you must summon courage and speak the truth because it is the truth that heals. It is the truth that will define. If the person you are speaking to realises that you are lying or deceiving him, he will not help,” the Primate said.
    He advised young pastors not to be in a hurry, adding that he observed that many of them are in a hurry to be noticed.
    “If you are with God, hear from God before you speak. Don’t dish out your imagination and say, ‘God has said’ Make sure you receive a message from God and you are in tune with Him (God),” Rev. Okoh said.
    He said the NGO will help him in ministry even after leaving as Primate in the coming year.
    “I want to continue with my work as a man of God. The book is about yearly situation and the solutions I provided. At this point, I decided that the two volumes should be published. There are other books unpublished. There is a gap between what we think and what we do. We want our children and those following us to know that we have not arrived. We must back it up with moral intergrity,” Rev. Okoh added.

  • Fasoranti's daughter: IGP orders overhaul of security structure in SW, SE, SS; insists killers will be brought to book

    Fasoranti's daughter: IGP orders overhaul of security structure in SW, SE, SS; insists killers will be brought to book

    From Jonas Ike, Abuja
    The Inspector-General of Police, IGP M.A Adamu has assured the nation that the killers of Mrs. Funke Olakunrin, daughter of the leader of the Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organization, Afenifere, Chief Reuben Fasorantin will certainly be found and made to face the full weight of the Law.
    The IGP notes that the Ondo State Police Command, backed by Special Forces and seasoned investigators from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and the Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU) deployed from the Force Headquarters, Abuja, on his directives, have already commenced a massive manhunt for the killers with a view to tracking, arresting and bringing them to justice.
    While condemning the heinous and barbaric crime, the IGP, as part of measures to prevent a future occurrence of such incidence, has ordered the total overhaul of security architecture on the highways straddling the Southern part of the country.
    In this vein, the Commissioners of Police in the affected States were ordered by the IGP to ensure adequate security arrangement in their areas of jurisdiction (AOR). He equally assures the nation that the Force Headquarters has perfected plans to replicate the special security arrangement powered by “Operation Puff Adder”currently ongoing in Kaduna- Abuja expressway in key highways in the Southern part of the country.
    The IGP further reiterates the fact that the Force will not rest on its oars until sanity is restored in every nook and cranny of the country. He therefore calls for calm and support from all Nigerians, especially residents of Ondo State, in aid of the current investigation.

  • Buratai’s comments on security reflects Buhari’s failure – PDP

    The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described as defeatist comments by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen Tukur Buratai to the effect that troops’ non-commitment to the counterinsurgency operations had been responsible for the inability of the military to defeat the Boko Haram insurgents.

    The PDP said the Army Chief’s comments had affirmed its position that President Muhammadu Buhari has failed in his duties as the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces.

    In a statement Monday by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said that the blame must be placed at the doorsteps of the President, who was under oath as the Commander-in-Chief, to ensure the security of lives and property, but had failed even in his own promise to lead from the front.

    “Mr. President, as chief security officer of the nation, should not hide under an Army Chief to push blames when he had failed to take appropriate steps to secure the nation and refused to heed wise counsel by well-meaning Nigerians to reorder his parade and rejig the nation’s security architecture for effectiveness.

    “Instead, the Buhari Presidency had carried on with endless lip service, empty assurances, unnecessary blame game and obvious lack of tact, while the nation is being ravaged”, the PDP added.

    The main opposition party insisted that despite what it described as the “cluelessness” of the Buhari Presidency, the troops have remained gallant, patriotic, making sacrifices and risking their lives in defending the country.

    The PDP was of the view that under the prevailing situation, a Commander-In-Chief should have risen up to the occasion, step up actions, resolve the issues and ensure that all efforts were galvanized to provide all the necessary requirements for the troops combating insurgency and other acts of violence against the nation.

    The party urged the military and troops in the frontline not to relent at this critical time, noting that Nigerians seriously appreciate the sacrifices they make in the course of securing the nation.

    It also called on the National Assembly to save the situation by immediately using its legislative instruments to wade into the situation in the interest of the nation.

  • FG partners States to streamline security in Northwest – Presidency

    FG partners States to streamline security in Northwest – Presidency

    Presidential media aide, Malam Garba Shehu, says the Buhari administration is working with state governments across the Northwest to pursue an urgent revamp of the national security apparatus in the subregion.

    In a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, Shehu, who is the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, said the partnership followed the infiltration of bandits into areas that were hitherto secure.

    ”This is coming on the heels of the recent killing of 34 persons in an attack on Tungar Kafau and Gidan Wawa communities in Shinkafi Local Government Areas of Zamfara,” the presidential aide said.

    Shehu quoted President Buhari as expressing sorrow over the renewed attacks and extended his sympathies to the governments and people of Sokoto and Zamfara states.

    The president charged all stakeholders, including the federal security agencies and the states involved in drawing up the long-term strategic defence plan to begin its immediate implementation.

    ”Under the plan, states are joining the federal government in supporting the security and military operations by providing logistical support.

    ”States are providing additional vehicles in addition to those provided from the center.

    ”The federal government is establishing new forward operation bases and when all of these come together, the ongoing operations will be scaled up,” the presidential aide added.

    According to him, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the various State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMA) are expected to streamline their operations to provide succor to displaced persons.

    He noted that thousands of the displaced persons were taking refuge in the neighboring Niger Republic.

    Shehu expressed the hope that the full implementation of the plan would provide security for residents to return to their deserted communities.

    He reiterated the determination of the Buhari administration to safeguard lives and property of all citizens, assuring that the government ”will not fail in that regard”.

  • Security: Osun gov, Oyetola meets Buratai

    Gov. Adegboyega Oyetola of Osun has urged the Chief of Army Staff , Lt.- Gen. Tukur Buratai, to speed up action on the joint security team to combat rising security challenge in the state.

    A statement issued in Osogbo by Mr Adeniyi Adeshina, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, said Oyetola made the plea when he met with Buratai in Abuja.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Osun government had announced that a joint security team of policemen, soldiers and operatives in other security agencies would be set up to patrol the highways and dark spots.

    According to Adeshina, the governor told the Chief of Army Staff that his visit was a follow up to the letter of request sent to him to support the security efforts in the state.

    He also said that the governor commended Buratai for the efforts of the military whose engineers were constructing a bridge across River Osun to connect Ede with Kuta and other communities in the state.

    Oyetola, according to the statement, said the South West governors have also resolved to organise a security summit .

    He said the summit was to prepare a joint plan to combat the rising crime in the geopolitical zone, especially on the Ibadan-Akure road where bandits had launched attacks on travellers.

    The statement quoted Buratai as assuring the governor that he would make all the efforts to support the security efforts in Osun.

    He reiterated that the army had always supported the police in ensuring internal security.