OP-MESA Relaunch, an Elixir for Ogun’s Insecurity

Perspective

Kayode Adebolu

The upsurge in kidnapping, cultism, banditry and other violent crimes in the country should be of concern to any serious government. In the last couple of weeks, motorists plying the Lagos/Ibadan, Ijebu-Ode/Ibadan, and Lagos/Sango-Ota/Abeokuta have been targets of kidnappers and armed robbers. This is why the Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, deserves a pat on the back for his administration’s reinvigoration of the State’s Security Trust Fund which ultimately impacted positively in the creation of the Joint Special Squad (JSS), as well as the approval of the Chief of Army Staff for the restart of OP-MESA to checkmate the rising crime waves in the state.

In the wake of the attacks on farmers and travellers in early 2020, six southern governors came together and decided to set up Western Nigeria Security Network (WSN) code-named, “Amotekun”, an outfit designed to complement the efforts of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

When the incessant attacks were unabated in Ogun, the government thought out of the box with the establishment of the JSIS, comprising the military, the police, Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Vigilante Groups, among others as a quick response mechanism, particularly in the communities affected by the farmers-herders clash in Yewa (Ogun West) axis of the state.

As a step further, the inauguration of OP-MESA recently, precisely, on Friday, January 21, 2022, was a confirmation of Ogun State Government’s commitment to the protection of lives and property, culminating in the handing over of 15 patrol vehicles, two Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) vehicles, communication gadgets and other crime-fighting equipment to the security operatives in the state. Not that alone, it was heart-warming when the governor pledged the continued provision of these set of crime-fighting equipment on a quarterly basis to the law enforcement agencies for effective policing of the state in a bid to stamp out criminal elements from making the state their safe haven.

“It is only in an environment guided by law and order that peaceful co-existence, political stability and socio-economic development, or even leisurely activities can thrive.

“Permit me to state that OP-MESA is not peculiar to our state. OP-MESA is currently in existence in 26 states. Inexplicably, ours was allowed to literally become comatose. We are reactivating it through a Presidential consent sought by our Administration. This formation will benefit from the support that will be provided by the Ogun State Security Trust Fund (OGSSTF) through the donations and contributions from government, the private sector and similar non-grata actors, as well as the goodwill of individuals.

“I, therefore, enjoin our people to take ownership of this security outfit by collaborating with it and supporting it. Together, we shall make Ogun state a most hospitable and a conducive place of our collective dreams”, averred the Governor.

Though security is in the exclusive list of the Nigerian Constitution and it ascribes to State Governors the duty of the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of their respective states, and as result, they can’t shirk their basic responsibilities to be responsive and proactive in tackling insecurity headlong in the face of a resurgence of kidnappings on inter-state roads.

Just in the last couple of weeks ago, two junior staff of a Federal Government Agency were kidnapped at Onigaari Village, on the same Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and also a popular actress narrowly escaped by a whisker from being kidnapped on the same spot. Other identified notable flashpoint is Fidiwo Village, same along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Governments, at all level, have a lot to do to curtail the unwholesome activities of these marauders who have turned themselves into beasts and are feeding fat on the proceeds from ransom-taking.

Governor Abiodun is a living example and the steps he has taken so far to address the menace will go a long way in bringing the ugly situation under control. His synergy approach by contacting his colleague in Oyo state, Engr Seyi Makinde, to proffer solutions to the hydra-headed vice is a welcome development, with the Joint collaboration in the area of providing security at the border posts between the two states-Ogun and Oyo.

In retrospect, and in response to the rising crime waves, the government alone can’t bear the burden alone. As a result, four months after the assumption of office of the current administration of Prince Dapo Abiodun, sometime in October 2019, it underscored the importance of security (as one of the five developmental ISEYA pillars) to the enthronement of a peaceful co-existence among different ethnic nationalities in the state and also to foster an enabling environment for businesses to thrive. Besides, shared national borders; proximity to Lagos, the fifth largest economy in Africa; Oyo state; and international borders to the neighbouring Republic of Benin; and the recent conferment status of Ogun state as an industrial hub, with flourishing economic activities has informed the need to respond to various security challenges that might arise.

The administration reviewed the enacted law that gives legal tooth to the Ogun State Security Trust Fund (OGSSTF), and passed it to the State House of Assembly for consent.

At the re-launch of the Fund the same month of October 2019, a staggering sum of N1.2 billion and logistics was realised from private donors, a development which in no small measure, helped the government in the procurement of crime-fighting equipment, such as communication gadgets,100 patrol vehicles, 200 powered bikes, bulletproof vests, helmets, and other accoutrements for the operatives. These equipment sourced from both individual and collaborative efforts would go a long way to tackle the shortage in tactical and communication gadgets, finances and operative motivation.

However, a good take from this administration is exemplified by the demonstration of the Governor who treasures human lives and he doesn’t play politics with the souls of fellow human beings as reflected in his commitment and resolve to place premium on investment in security of lives and property in the state to the benefit of all and sundry.

Towards ensuring financial prudence and accountancy and judicious use of the resources, the OGSSTF, managed by an autonomous Board, is detached from the government’s interference to enable the outfit benefit immensely from donations and contributions from the government, corporate organisations send private individuals.

There is no doubt that, the flag-off of the newly reinvigorated OP-MESA would return sanity on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway which is prone to all heinous crimes, in due course.

Meanwhile, it is a call to service to beckon on the governor to continue in his good works and extend his lofty projects to other parts of the state, without bias. In the last 31 months, the governor has impacted positively in the lives of the people of the state, unlike his predecessor who struggled throughout his eight years in office to complete a half of the initiated projects but abandoned the rest mid-way for his successor to complete.

Some of these abandoned projects have either been completed or nearing completion in order to prevent waste of tax payers’ monies and also for the benefit of all the citizens of the state.

This rare feat is a testimonial to the affirmation of the governor as a man of integrity who walks the talking and he deserves re-election in 2023 to enable him complete all the landmark projects his administration has embarked upon.

• Adebolu wrote from Imeko, in Imeko-Afon LGA of Ogun State.