This is not the best of times for Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, as armed robbery appears to be giving him sleepless nights. Residents of Abeokuta, Sango Ota, Ijebu-Ode, Ijebu-Igbo, Ago Iwoye, Ilaro and Sagamu are asking the rhetorical question: Will Amosun win the war against armed banditry?

In the past three weeks, hardly a week passed without an incident of robbery at major banks, either killing or maiming people carting away millions of Naira.
Even in the midst of this insecurity, Amosun continues to assure the people of the state that he was on top of the situation, vowing to win the battle to end the menace of armed robbery in the state. Aside from commercial banks being robbed by the hoodlums, residents of Abeokuta, the state capital, in recent weeks have not literarily been sleeping with their eyes closed.

While the immediate past deputy governor of the state, Alhaja Salmat Badru, escaped a robbery attack by the whiskers, the residents of Oke-Ejigbo, all in the Abeokuta South Local Government Area of the state were not so lucky as they were serially robbed.
However, the state police command and the vigilance group deserve commendation for their gallant efforts, which appear to have stemmed the ugly tide, even in the face of high weaponry by the bandits.

The recent attack on commercial banks in Sagamu by the dare devil-robbers would forever remain evergreen in the minds of the residents, who were surprised at the audacity and effrontery of the robbers, who beat all security gadgets to rob the banks. Not even the bravery of the state vigilante group, which lost one of its men with several others injured, could stop the attack.
The Sagamu attack came barely few weeks after similar attack on commercial banks at the permanent site of the state owned university, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, where they did not only cart away money, but killed students and others.

The mention of armed robbers in the state appears to be the beginning of fear among residents and commercial banks, which, for two days last week, shut their offices against customers for fear of being robbed. Not even assurances from the high hierarchy of the state police command, could convince them to open offices. They held series of meetings with the police and the state government.
Amosun, after an inspection of two banks in Sabo-Sagamu, attacked by robbers lamented that the incident was the third after similar ones in Ilaro and Ago-Iwoye. He also visited the family house of Alhaji Kareem Amusa, a member of the vigilance service, who was killed by the bandits.

The governor announced that the state would soon take delivery of highly sophisticated equipment that would assist security operatives in tackling the menace. Amosun said the state would need about 120 Hi-lux jeeps as well as 30 APCs to be located in strategic areas to effectively secure the state:“We all know that security is important for any meaningful development to take place. Our goal of industrialising the state cannot be realised in an atmosphere of insecurity. We have to win this battle and we will win it.”
Amosun solicited the cooperation of the people in exposing the hideouts of criminals, stressing that “armed robbers were not ghosts, but people who reside with us, but try to hide their nefarious activities and identities.

The governor during the week announced the readiness of his administration to partner with the military to ensure security of life and property. He made the disclosure while playing host to the Commander, Nigerian Army Corps of Artillery, Major-General Emmanuel Etim Bassey. He identified proximity to Lagos State and closeness to border areas as few of the security challenges confronting the state.

Amosun also told a forum of bankers from Ijebuland that his administration was poised to crack down robbery activities in the state: “We have approached some neighbouring states to co-operate with us in confronting the security challenges we are facing here. We should not give the hoodlums opportunities to relocate form one area to another.“Security equipment don’t come cheap. A standard APC goes for between N85 million and N100 million. We need between 30 and 35 to cover the state and ensure that robbers don’t find it easy. We need to tool the APC’s as well as equip and motivate those who will operate them.

“The joint military/police patrol will cost money too. We need at least 30 teams to patrol the whole state and that will cost money. We will need about 1,200 men for the patrol and N50 million would be needed to fund each of the patrol teams, this amounts to N1.5billion.”

The state police command last Friday embarked on what it tagged: “Show of Force.” Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Muyiwa Adejobi, said: “We are battle-ready for those people who want to make life miserable for the residents of this state.”
For three days last week, commercial banks in the state did not open offices for fear of being attacked by robbers, who even had the audacity to send a notice of attack on some of the banks. In the preceding weeks, the state police command foiled two attempts by the men of the world to rob people of their belongings.

First, at an old generation bank in Ota, where the hoodlums, who arrived the premises at about 5.00a.m fled after a gun duel with the police. According to residents of the area, some of the robbers sustained injuries, prompting Adejobi to warn members of the public particularly doctors and nurses to report anyone or group with gun wounds to the nearest police station.

As if that was not enough, the robbers re-grouped in Isara, in Remo North Local Government Area of the state where they had attempted to block the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway before the arrival of the police who did not only dislodge them, but killed two of them.

We must win the war, or… -Gov Amosun