In a move to push back the rampaging kidnappers and bandits operating freely across the country, 15 state governors have assembled no fewer than 52, 000-man vigilante squads to battle the hoodlums.
Officials in Delta, Kano, Plateau, Sokoto, and 11 other states said their governors had cobbled together a coalition of vigilantes, hunters, and neighbourhood watch groups to complement the police and other security forces.
Scores of Nigerians have been abducted across the country in the past weeks, with the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Lagos, and some other states coming under siege.
Though the authorities deployed troops and police operatives, this did not alleviate the security challenge.
On Monday, gunmen killed two Ekiti monarchs, the Onimojo of Imojo, Oba Olatunde Olusola, and the Elesun of Esun Ekiti, Oba Babatunde Ogunsakin, while the Alara of Ara Ekiti, Oba Adebayo Fatoba, narrowly escaped.
On the same day, suspected bandits also abducted five pupils of the Apostolic Faith Group of Schools and four staff members.
The abductors are demanding a N100m ransom for the release of the nine victims.
In response to the troubling situation, the Delta State Government said it had established 2,400 vigilante groups in the 11 local government areas of the state.
The state’s Director-General on Security Matters, Mr David Tonwe, we have about 2,400 vigilante groups in 11 local government areas of the state, including hunters. And they are working well. We are still making efforts to cover the whole 25 local governments.’’
2,500 security personnel
To assure Kano residents distressed by the abduction epidemic, the Kano State Government recently launched a training programme for 2,500 security personnel at the Sani Abacha Stadium.
The training was conducted last month at the state’s Corporate Security Training Institute in Gabasawa town, the headquarters of Gabasawa Local Government Area.
The initiative aims to boost youth job opportunities and strengthen the state’s security architecture.
The Director-General of Media and Publicity to the governor, Sanusi Tofa, said the trained personnel would be deployed in ministries, departments, and agencies to bolster the existing security structures and enhance public safety.
In Plateau State, Governor Caleb Mutfwang has boosted the strength of ‘Operation Rainbow,’ the local security outfit, to over 700 persons to beef up the security in the state.
The home-grown security outfit was established in 2010 by former governor Jonah Jang after approval by former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The creation of the outfit followed complaints by citizens about the poor performance of the conventional security operatives, who they accused of failing to protect them from the attacks by gunmen.
Former Governor Simon Lalong, who took over from Jang, was accused of relegating the security outfit to the background throughout his eight-year tenure.
However, Mutfwang, who succeeded Lalong, had said he was determined to revive the security outfit following the rising attacks and killings in several communities.
Recently, the governor unveiled 600 personnel of the outfit who passed out after vigorous training.
Before the latest addition, the outfit had over 100 personnel, who remained in the outfit during the Lalong years.
Like its counterparts, the Anambra State Government said it had established the Anambra Vigilante Services to complement the efforts of the federal security operatives.
Investigation showed that the vigilante service was set up during the administration of former governor Chris Ngige to tackle kidnappings in the state.
It was further gathered that the current administration of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo had strengthened the vigilante group to confront headlong the issues of kidnapping, which was hitherto rampant in about eight local government areas of the state.
Findings indicate that Bayelsa also has a 607-man vigilante group financed by the state government.
The state had also directed the leadership and stakeholders of communities yet to set up vigilante groups to complement the efforts of conventional security agencies to do so without any further delay to ensure the proper security of their domains.
In Ogun State, over 16,500 members of the Vigilante Service of Nigeria and So Safe Corps are working with the security forces to protect the citizens.
The state Commander of the Vigilante Service of Nigeria, Sola Shodiyan, said that the officers of the group were over 10,000 while the Commander of Ogun State Community, Social Orientation and Safety Corps, codenamed So-Safe Corps, Soji Ganzallo, said the operatives of the security agency are 6,500.
Meanwhile, the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has ordered the re-accreditation of all operatives of the state’s Security Vigilante Network, numbering over 6,500.
Obaseki gave the order during a security briefing at the Solomon Arase Command and Control Centre in Benin City, the Edo State capital, in the company of the state security chiefs.
He pledged to sustain his collaboration with security agencies to combat crime and criminality in the state.
