By Balkis Tijani.
The Speaker of Kwara State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Salihu Yakubu Danladi has decried the rising spate of insecurity in the state, which he lamented could deteriorate, owing to the vulnerable positioning of Kwara State as border community to the Northern and Southern axis of the country who currently witness an upsurge in banditry, kidnapping, ritual murders and all sorts of heinous crimes.
Hon. Danladi, during a familiarisation visit to security chiefs in the state, advocated collaborative effort with all relevant stakeholders towards maintaining the peaceful nomenclature of Kwara State.
He said, “We were not acquainted with banditry but now we have bandits, kidnappers, ritual killers and all sorts in most of the North Central and South Western states.
“Our geographical location exposes us to a time bomb which we must arrest before it explodes. Kwara is a border community to the Northern and Southern axis where there are security crisis, we want stronger security presence in these border communities.”
The Speaker further identified some reported security flashpoints in the state.
“There are lots of criminal activities on Ilesha baruba – Gwanara road, some part of the Southern Kwara roads have been reported to be security flash points. Our borders are porous and expose us to security threat, we don’t want the peaceful nomenclature of Kwara state to be history”, he stated.
Responding to the Speaker’s appeal, the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, disclosed that criminal elements being pursued by the Force in the South West were infiltrating other neighboring states, including Kwara because of the state’s ungoverned forest reserves that are now converted to criminal havens.
The police commissioner, however assured the Speaker of continued efforts by the police to ensure Kwara State is not invaded.
Also speaking, the Kwara State Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Bello Ale, lauded the Speaker for boosting their morales, adding that although, little or no support was being enjoyed from the government, the agency has delivered in its operations.
