*Inaugurates 12- man Oyo Amotekun Governing Board
By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan
Governor Seyi Makinde, on Monday, said that Amotekun is a strong reason why Oyo State farmers in rural communities are able to return to their farms without fear of attacks.
The governor said this while inaugurating a 12-man Governing Board of the Oyo State Security Network Agency, codenamed Amotekun Corps in Ibadan.
Governor Makinde emphasized that officers and men of the Amotekun Corps contributed to the security and order experienced in the state under Omituntun 1.0 as the body collaborated well with the federal security agencies to maintain peace and security in the state.
“We know that security is strongly linked to the development of any community. In fact, one of the core reasons why we witnessed accelerated development under Omituntun 1.0 is because Oyo Amotekun worked along with other security agencies to keep our state secure”, he said.
Gov Makinde added, “The Amotekun policing meant that they are often the first necessity of defence for our rural communities. If we go through Amotekun’s accomplishments under Omituntun 1.0, we will see that they are a strong reason why our farmers in rural communities are able to return to their farms without fear of attack.
” They recorded huge successes in stopping kidnappings, motor-bike snatching, burglaries, illegal mining and fraud.We have a record of 10 kidnapping rescues that were carried out by the Amotekun Corps between June 2021 and May 2022″.
He stressed further, ” When we started, the Police being the leading agency for internal security in Nigeria, were also apprehensive, saying who are these people and what is the state government trying to achieve? But, today, I am happy to say that the relationship between the Nigerian Police and Amotekun has become so cordial that they go out together to perform joint operations.”
Charging the Amotekun Corps to work more so that the economic growth being experienced in the state can continue, Gov Makinde
said the new board has “the right set of people that will continue to lead Oyo Amotekun on the path of sustainable development and on the path of cooperation with other security agencies within the state.”
He maintained that the Amotekun “Board was set up in conformity with the law and that its core mandate and primary responsibility is to make policy and administrative guidelines for the agency to perform optimally for development of the state”
Speaking on behalf of the members, chairman of the board, AIG Akande (rtd), assured that the corps will continue to work with other security agencies to make Oyo State secure, especially in the rural communities.
