Ondo Govt Reacts To Arrest Of 45 Northern Youths In Okitipupa

The Ondo State Government says it is trying to ensure that 45 northern youths who were arrested in Okitipupa Local Government Area of the state are returned to their states safely.

Naija News had reported how the youths were apprehended by the state chapter of the Western Nigeria Security Network, Amotekun, on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters, commander of the security outfit in the state, Adetunji Adeleye,  said the youths who arrived at the town in a truck confessed they were in the town to undergo military training in the barracks to be security guards.

He said upon interrogation, it was discovered that the youths, who hailed from Kano and Jigawa states, were brought to the town for employment by a non-profit organisation for purported security training.

But in a statement on Sunday, Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Donald Ojogo, described the incident as “a precarious one”.

He noted that the development would have degenerated into jungle justice if the security agents had not handled it professionally.

“The security situation we found ourselves in the last 72 hours was a very precarious one. If not that it was discretely and professionally handled and well managed by officials of government, particularly Amotekun Commander and SSA on security, the situation would have degenerated to the extent of lynching and jungle justice,” he said.

“What government is trying to do today is to ensure that the way they came to the state, they will leave the state safely, peacefully and unhurt, so that when they get to their various states, they will also testify to their state government and their people that the movement that brought them to Ondo state was an unclear one and the state government had to protect them and move them back to their state.”

The commissioner asked the public and government officials to make security agents their first point of contact whenever issues of security arise.

He said: “I have the instructions and the directive of Mr Governor to use this medium inform everybody, particularly, government officials, that any security situation we found ourselves, the first point of contact must be security agencies.”