The Oyo Global Forum (OGF) has raised the alarm over what it described as a growing security threat in Oyo State following a Tuesday night attack in the Old Oyo National Park that left five park rangers dead.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Taiwo Adebayo, the group’s chairman, said the attack which claimed the lives of five officers, including two indigenes of the Oyo Federal Constituency, confirms the southward movement of armed groups operating in the country’s north-central region.
OGF said the incident was predictable, citing the park’s location along “largely ungoverned forest corridors” linking Kwara, Niger and Kebbi states, where violent extremists and other armed criminal networks have been active.
“Past reports also indicated the presence of strange actors who, from our assessment, appeared to be a cell of a terrorist organisation exploring new opportunities for entrenchment,” the group noted.
The forum expressed concern that the Old Oyo National Park which is home to relics of the historic Oyo Empire and surrounded by vulnerable rural communities, has become increasingly exposed to infiltration by armed groups.
Calls for Urgent Government Intervention
OGF urged governments at all levels to establish an early warning system and to ensure that security agencies, including Amotekun, respond swiftly and decisively.
The group also called on federal lawmakers representing Oke-Ogun, Orire and Atiba areas to raise the matter urgently at the National Assembly, insisting that Forest Guards must be deployed to reclaim the park.
“Forest Guards must be deployed to the park to protect its communities and retake it from different armed groups that have turned it into hideouts and operational hubs.
“It must be stressed that deep, seeming intractable violence in other places started as a simmering threat that was left unchecked,” the group warned.
OGF said it is convening discussions with other community groups in Oyo State to push for coordinated action to prevent further escalation.
Mr Adebayo warned that failure to act could allow criminal elements to consolidate their presence in the park.
READ ALSO: Five National Park Officers killed in bandit attack in Oyo – Governor Makinde
Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde confirmed the death of five officers of the park in the Tuesday’s attack in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
He urged residents to stay calm and assured that security forces have been deployed to restore normalcy to the area.
Friends, family mourn victims
Tributes have poured in for the forest guards killed in Tuesday’s bandit attack at the Old Oyo National Park. Friends, colleagues and community members took to Facebook to mourn the officers, describing them as committed public servants who died while performing their duties.
A Facebook user, Oladokun David, expressed grief over the death of Muideen Olalere, one of the guards who lost his life in the incident. He wrote that the Ogbigbi Ifesowapo Jobele community had lost a dedicated and respected member, adding that Mr Olalere would be dearly missed by those who knew him.
“We lost you to the hands of bandits today, my amiable friend Mr Muideen Olalere. Our community will miss you forever. We love you, but Jesus loves you most. Rest in peace, my friend,” he posted.
Another Facebook user wrote “RIP friend, we miss you.”
