…Governor mourns forest guards, civilians lost in Sunday incident as Army HQ orders GOC relocation to Kwara
Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has called for increased security deployments across the state following deadly attacks in Oke Ode and surrounding areas of Ifelodun Local Government.
In a statement on Sunday, the Governor expressed deep sorrow over the deaths of forest guards and residents who fell victim to the early morning assault. He praised the courage of the guards and local hunters who resisted the assailants, saying their sacrifice would never be forgotten.
“My heartfelt condolences go to the families. No word can adequately capture the depth of my sadness and nothing can compensate the bereaved families over these incidents, in spite of our efforts and the investments in enlisting and training the forest guards to bolster the conventional forces,” he said.
The Governor acknowledged the concerns of citizens and emphasised that more military presence was needed to fully dislodge criminal elements in parts of Kwara South and Kwara North.
“While we appreciate the efforts and unquantifiable sacrifices of the security forces as well as the successes so far, we definitely need to do a lot more until we are completely out of the wood,” he added.
Governor AbdulRazaq also appealed to residents to remain calm and not turn on one another, noting that unity and vigilance were vital in confronting insecurity.
He commended the forest guards and hunters for their bravery, acknowledging that although five of their members were lost, they were able to neutralise several of the attackers.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army Headquarters has directed the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 2 Division, Ibadan, to immediately relocate to Kwara State to strengthen coordination and boost military response to the incident.
Leave a Reply