Clement Adeyi, Osogbo

Determined to proffer solution to the insecurity challenges in the country, especially in the South West region which is currently witnessing kidnapping activities, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Muhamad Adamu, has assured that the Nigeria Police Force would go the whole hog in targeting forests being used by kidnappers and bandits as their dens and flush them out.

The IGP disclosed this on Tuesday in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, during a meeting with security stakeholders as part of his South West security summit to proffer solution to the insecurity challenges in the region.

He, however, assured the residents of the state on security of their lives and property, stressing that the police had concluded plans to rid some identified forests of bandits and kidnappers.

While explaining the outcome of the security summit held in Ibadan on Monday, the IGP said that the security stakeholders had come up with resolutions to send special indigenous forces to their localities to help augment the efforts of the commissioners of police within the region.

” We are specifically ready to target the forests where there are bandits and kidnappers and take war to their dens before they strike,” he stressed.

“We also resolved to work with other local security agencies like vigilantes and fight crime, particularly because the governors have pledged to continue to support law enforcement agencies in their fight against crime by providing vehicles and other logistics,” he added.

“I am delighted to note that the strategies jointly developed between the strategic community actors and the police, which are currently being implemented have been effective in addressing the identified security threats in the geopolitical zone.

“This is evident by the fact that since the meeting, the rate of these crimes has not only dropped drastically, several bandits have also voluntarily renounced crime, submitted their weapons and released several victims that had hitherto been kidnapped and held in their camps across the zone.

“We have concluded plans to, at the end of security summit, deploy special forces to the states in the region to complement the efforts of the commissioners of police in the areas in combating crimes and ensure a safe society for the people to thrive in their daily activities.

“We have rejigged our efforts to ensure that miscreants that carry sophisticated and other types of weapons around would no longer have a peace of mind in all the states of the federation.”

He stressed that the security situation in the southwest region, compared to other parts of the country was under control.

He stressed that the police had agreed with other stakeholders in the region to deploy technology to combat crime in the southwest states.

“We are aware of the shortage of men and this is the reason the federal government approved recruitment of 10,000 men every year to cover for the shortage.

“This year’s exercise is ongoing, it is not suspended. The process is going on and will soon be completed. The cadets have written tests, completed the physical fitness exercises after which they would be taken to the police college to complete the process,” Adamu said.

He added that government was concerned with the welfare of the men and officers of the force to further encourage them to combat crime in the society.

Governor Gboyega Oyetola who also reassured the people of the state of security of lives and property, enthused that the IGP was on top of the security situation in Nigeria and the South West region.

Describing Osun as the most peaceful state, Oyetola said he would use everything within his reach to ensure that the people of the state sleep with their two eyes closed by providing all the necessary apparatuses to tackle the insecurity challenges.

“The visit of the IG is to reassure our people to take security very seriously. When you see the number one police officer in the state, it shows that he is particularly concerned about the issue of insecurity.

The governor pledged government’s full support to the police to win the insecurity war.

“In our capacity as a state government, we would try to support the police in terms of logistics and other things like that,” Oyetola said.

“This is to reassure our people that we are safe, and we want to continue to be the number one safest state in Nigeria,” he added.