Gov Ajimobi and the History of Peace (2nd Edition) | By Afeez Bello
In any state administration, there are a lot of governance benefits that one can deduce from the function of government and the role of a governor. These benefits will take us to many benefits across all sectors, such as peace and security, education and research, health, taxation policy, revenue & finance, and transport, among various others.
This, however, will take us to today’s celebration of the 76th posthumous birthday of the Koseleri of Oyo State, Abiola Ajimobi, who has contributed his ideas to the governance and administration of the pacesetter state in all sectors where peace and security take centre stage.
Peace and security are not the same; they’re like iron that sharpens iron. You can’t achieve peace without security, and you can’t achieve fruitful security without having a peace mindset. Any peace without security is just a fully loaded gun which is awaiting a tip of a finger to strike its trigger.
One of the main purposes of a state is securing its citizens by maintaining order and countering threats through a good security network and system, power, or force.
The establishment of a security outfit, codenamed “Operation Burst” by Ajimobi, marked a radical turning point in the history of Oyo State by rejigging the security of the state and restoring peace, which brought about stability in many sectors for eight good years.
The reverse was the case after the tenure of Ajimobi due to a lack of continuity orientation from the new government that took over in 2019; thereby, Operation Burst began to shrink.
The banditry and kidnapping that engulfed the southwestern part of Nigeria a few years ago brought about a treaty that led to the creation of the Western Nigeria Security Network, “Operation Amotekun”, by the six states in the region.
The Oyo State Chapter of Amotekun swung into action by dealing with bandits. This action was commendable and brought relative peace to the state.
The state government failed to intensify its efforts to foster security and peace in the state by not reviving the dying Operation Burst under his watch on one hand and by letting Amotekun officers remain contract staff under slavery conditions since the establishment of the outfit in 2020 (according to the reports). This action is prompting the Amotekun officers to prepare for a statewide strike and protest due to the failure of the current administration in the state to issue appointment letters to the officers.
Failure to elevate Amotekun officers from contract workers to official staff is creating a vacuum in the security of the state since kidnappers are operating in the state without being checked. In the last few weeks, the president of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Ibadan Elite, Mrs Ibukun Otesile, was kidnapped in the Akobo area, and Saheed Wale Oriade fell into the hands of kidnappers at the entrance of his office on Akala Expressway, among others. While Otesile has regained freedom, Oriade is yet to be found. This could be traced to the ill-treatment of Amotekun officers, which has reduced their morale, and Operation Burst, which was then in the centre stage of protecting the lives and properties of the people in the state, has no meaningful credibility again regarding the security of the state.
The layman on the street knows perfectly well that Ajimobi will never joke with the security of lives and properties, and he would have taken drastic action in addressing the issue of kidnapping.
Ajimobi Lives On!!!
