The Presidency, out of jittery summoned the six Southwest Governors on Wednesday, 8th January, 2020, to a meeting in Aso Rock over the launching of a security outfit in Southwest known as ‘Amotekun’.
The summon came barely 24 hours before the launching of the security agency which has been drawing huge applause from thousands of Nigerians, especially those of Southwest origin. It is billed for launching in Ibadan, Oyo State by the six governors in Southwest on Thursday, January 9. The launching will be presided over by Ondo State Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu who is the Chairman, Southwest Governors’ Forum.
Sources from the Presidency disclosed that the Presidency asked the six governors to attend a meeting at Aso Rock Wednesday evening to discuss the details of Amotekun and why it should not be shut down before kick off
The outfit is a local collaborative security agency jointly established by Oyo, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti and Osun states. Its idea generated from a security summit organized by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission in July at the wake of heightened kidnapping and armed robbery mostly on highways in the region.
Its personnel will include members of the vigilante group in each state, security experts and conventional security agencies including the police and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). They are to gather intelligence and effect arrest where relevant, with the overall goal of improving security in the region.
Reports have it that the Nigerian Police (NP) has been uncomfortable with inclusion of unconventional security personnel in the operation inspite of the fact that the Commissioner of Police in each state will oversee the activities of the outfit since it is the only agency legally empowered to arrest and prosecute.
