Amotekun May Promote Violence, Group Warns

A group, the Societal Safety Network (SSN), has kicked against the South-west Security Network, codenamed Amotekun, which was recently launched by the South-west governors, warning that it may promote violence.

The Executive Director of the group, Abdulrahaman Agboola, while addressing a press conference on Wednesday on the motive for the establishment of the regional security outfit, described Amotekun as a threat to the federation.

Agboola warned that if the already rising tension is not tamed, it might escalate to violence and put the lives of Yoruba people in other regions at risk.

He, therefore, called on the federal government to thoroughly scrutinise the operation.

According to him, "We respect the ideals of the developmental agenda of the Southwestern Nigerian and commend their progressive action plan on the economy of the region, but we seriously  frown at the hurried nature without considering  the plight of the Yoruba living in the North on two grounds. 

 

"We fear that if the Amotekun is misunderstood as targeting  a particular  ethnic groups, this will expose Yoruba living  in other parts of the country  to dangers, with predicated reprisal as history recorded during past ethnic clashes.

"During the hullabaloo on the Amotekun debacle, the South-east state governors were charged by their kinsmen to follow suit and lunch similar platform while the North Central held a security summit in Lafia on the matter. Also, those in the North-west and North-east regions area are demanding the establishment of similar security networks in their zones. Are we preparing for war against ourselves in the country?"

Agboola called on the government to fight insecurity completely instead of regionally.

The group equally frowned at the rising spate of crimes across the country and urged the security agencies to step up the fight against criminality.

It also called on the state governors to use the platform of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) to facilitate nexus among themselves to tame insecurity in the country.