Afenifere raises the alarm over alleged plot seize, distablise Yorubaland

Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, on Sunday, condemned the response of Nigerian Police Force to the invasion of some communities in Lagos and Ogun states last week by suspected militants which led to the death of many innocent residents, saying the attacks may be precursors to organised campaign of violence to seize and distablise Yorubaland.

Recall that no fewer than 50 people were feared dead on Thursday night when suspected militants swooped on the neighbouring communities in Elepete and Igbo Olomu, the borderline communities in Lagos/Ogun states. This came days after the militants killed no less than 15 persons in Imushin community in Ogijo area of Ogun State. Afenifere in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, expressed worry that “just like in the first attack, the police has failed to make any arrest and instead has engaged only in feeble denial of the casualty figures by ridiculously insisting that “only two people were killed”.

The organisation said: “The latest police claim is as ridiculous as the remarks of Ogun Police CP, Abdumajid Ali after the earlier attack. The police boss who claimed the same militants had been behind the recent spate of pipeline vandalism and economic sabotage had said: “It’s not true that 15 people were killed there. The DPO Ogijo was on ground; he reported that only three people were killed and their bodies have been recovered from the scene”. Afenifere said it was deeply troubled that all accounts from the communities show that the security forces have not been of any assistance to the affected communities in all their travails.

“Our fears are now heightened that these nibbling attacks may be precursors to organised campaign of violent attacks to seize the peace of Yorubaland and destabilise the peaceful region,” the organisation stated. While sympathising with all families that lost loved ones in the attacks, the Yoruba socio-political organisation appealed to residents of the affected communities and indeed the entire South West states to be more vigilant than ever about movements around their communities “as the Nigerian state is daily showing them that it cannot protect them and yet would not accede to our quest for state police”.

The organisation disclosed that it had “embarked on top level consultations with our neighbours whom police sources have pointed fingers at without any arrest to get to the bottom of these needless, unprovoked and unwarranted attacks and investigations are going on all sides and our findings will be made public in the next few days. It is important to know the source of these attacks less we fall into a possible trap to set off war between us and our neighbours by fifth columnists. “To the Nigerian state we say: you are shamelessly failing the Yoruba nation in this decisive moment and we are losing confidence in your capacity to guarantee our safety. Act now!, the organisation added.