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Why OPC, others are handicapped – Gani Adams
By Lukman Olabiyi
In many once-peaceful towns and villages across Yorubaland, anxiety is slowly replacing the region’s trademark warmth.
From Kogi and Kwara to Ekiti, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Ogun, Lagos and parts of Edo and Delta states, worrying signs are emerging and for Iba Gani Adams, Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland and national coordinator of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), the alarm bells can no longer be ignored.
Speaking with members of his council, Adams painted a stark picture of a region edging toward a security collapse.
He warned that insecurity has reached a critical, existential level, driven largely by what he described as a dangerous infiltration of forests across the Southwest and Middle Belt by heavily armed criminal groups preparing to attack towns and cities.
According to Adams, today’s crisis is the direct consequence of earlier warnings that leaders failed to heed.
Over a year ago, he said, he wrote to all Southwest governors, urging them to partner with local security organisations including the OPC to clear criminal elements from the forests.
“No response came. And now the danger is staring everyone in the face,” he lamented.
He stressed that indigenous security outfits are not inherently ineffective but are hamstrung by lack of government coordination, inadequate political will and weak institutional backing.
Without legal authority, logistics or intelligence sharing, he argued, they cannot match the firepower or organisation of entrenched criminal networks.
Adams’ concerns mirror the tragic stories that have shaken communities across the region:
The killing of the Olukoro of Koro in Kwara State, Maj. Gen. Segun Aremu (rtd.) and the abduction of his wife.
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The assassination of Oba Israel Adeusi, the traditional ruler of Ifon in Ondo State.
A surge in attacks on farmers, ambushes on travellers, assaults on women, and kidnappings of community leaders.
He warned that the insecurity ravaging the Southwest is linked to the escalating violence in the Middle Belt, where more than 300 villages across Benue, Plateau, Niger, Nasarawa, and Taraba have been overrun by armed groups and herder militias.
“The Middle Belt, once the nation’s food basket, has become a theatre of war,” he said, noting that national forests have become safe havens for criminals financing weapons through illegal mining.
Adams also welcomed reports that former U.S. President Donald Trump had proposed assisting Nigeria in tackling terrorism.
“If our governors are powerless or unwilling to act, it is better for American soldiers to help this land,” he argued, dismissing fears that foreign assistance would lead to U.S. military bases in Nigeria.
He cited the 2020 U.S. special forces mission that rescued an abducted American in northern Nigeria as an example of decisive action.
His comments follow a new British travel advisory warning citizens to avoid about 20 Nigerian states due to insecurity a development he described as deeply embarrassing.
To reverse the decline, Adams renewed his call for a comprehensive Southwest Security Summit involving traditional rulers, religious leaders, farmers, herders, business groups, and security agencies.
“The time to act is now. This existential threat must be addressed urgently to prevent further deterioration,” he warned.
For Adams, the solution lies in a blend of local vigilance, coordinated regional action and international cooperation.
Communities must revive grassroots intelligence networks, governments must set aside political hesitation, and both local and global partners must collaborate before the spreading violence becomes irreversible.
