The Oyo state government has reacted to reports of security operatives compromising at its border with Ogun state, along Abeokuta – Ibadan Expressway, despite ban on Interstate travels.
POLITICS NIGERIA exclusively reported how motorcyclists, after giving the security operatives N100 bribe, smuggle travellers in the state without hassle. This reporter went undercover to and fro Ibadan from Abeokuta to expose the corrupt security operatives who allow infiltration of the state’s border.
The Oyo State border is being manned by operatives of the Nigerian Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and Nigeria Immigration Service.
Although commercial buses are not allowed passage, motorcyclists have a field day plying that route since the announcement of inter-state lockdown.
At every first journey of the day the motorcyclists are expected to purchase a tally for N100. This tally gives them passage the whole day regardless of how many journeys they embarked upon with or without passengers.
However, reacting to the report, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde, Taiwo Adisa, condemned any act that compromises the effective manning of the state’s borders.
Mr Adisa, who spoke with POLITICS NIGERIA in a telephone interview, blamed the security organisations.
“Governors are concerned that interstate lockdown appears not to be working. The major problem is the security organisations.”
Speaking on efforts of the government to make the law enforcement agents comfortable, he said:
“As far as this state is concerned, Governor Seyi Makinde embarked on tour on every of the security location at the border post at the beginning of the lockdown.”
“He did that to not only motivate the security officers but also passed a message that the state is concerned and will not look the other way while people are flooding the state from other areas.”
He added that the first set of face masks and sanitizers were given to the police to aid their operations.
“If any investigative report finds the state to have compromised in any way, I think the challenge is to the security authorities to correct the wrongs,” Mr Adisa stated.
Recall that the spokesperson of the Oyo state police command, Olugbenga Fadeyi promised that any officer caught compromising will be punished accordingly.
” We have warned them on several occasions about the implications of these things. We will not spare anyone involved,” He told POLITICS NIGERIA.
He also promised to escalate the matter to relevant authorities.
