The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to fire the heads of Nigeria’s security agencies and overhaul the security structure to stem the rising tide of insecurity in the country.
It cited the endemic threats of kidnapping, killings and insurgency across the country as the reason for the call.
The YCE is at the forefront of the call for the total restructuring of the country and the adoption of federalism as a panacea for the political and economic ailments of the country.
The secretary of the council, Kunle Olajide, who spoke in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday, said except the Chief of Defence Staff, Gabriel Olonisakin, the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, and others were sacked, the country would continue to witness criminality.
He also called on the president to restructure the country in line with the advocacy for true federalism, saying the lopsidedness in the country’s structure was causing poverty among citizens, thereby leading to an upsurge in crimes.
Mr Olajide advised President Buhari to treat the alarm raised by Afenifere that the southwest region has been taken over by killer herdsmen and other criminal gangs, with the utmost attention.
He said Nigerians were helpless due to a geometric increase in the level of poverty and economic depression being witnessed and noted that the populace should not expect less crime rate under this harsh condition.
“The present service chiefs started with President Buhari four years ago; still, they have not been able to reduce insurgency in the North and kidnapping in the south,” he said.
“My opinion is that they have run out of ideas and they should be sacked. They are fatigued already and have nothing to offer.
“The best for President Buhari is to bring in fresh hands to manage our security architecture to prevent these killings.
“I don’t share the view of Fulanisation or Islamisation agenda, but Nigeria has become the capital city of poverty worldwide displacing India, so we should expect crime to soar.
“In Nigeria, the poverty level is high in the north, because the area is troubled. But these herdsmen and other bandits are moving down south and they see the southwest as a fertile land where they can make millions through kidnapping and ritual killings.
“So, the threat is real and what I expect the Federal government to do is to put security on red alert and be proactive.
“The six governors in the region should mobilise the traditional rulers, the youth groups and other interested bodies to work with the military, police and NSCDC through a Joint Task Force and allied means and comb all the suspected forests to dislodge these criminals from their hideouts.”
The YCE secretary further called on the president to implement the recommendations of the several committees set up to look into the calls for restructuring and state police.
“I want to applaud the president for coming out boldly to align himself with the fact that the country needs true federalism and this will help in solving some of these inevitable challenges lopsided structures had caused in our system,” Mr Olajide added.
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