There is an outrage across the land over the killing by gunmen on Monday of two traditional rulers in Ekiti State, the Onimojo of Imojo-Ekiti, Oba Olatunde Samuel Olusola and the Elesun of Esun-Ekiti, Oba David Babatunde Ogunsola.
The thread cuts across starting from President Bola Tinubu and tying Ekiti State Governor Biodun Oyebanji and his immediate predecessor Dr Kayode Fayemi, Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Lekan Balogun, Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, Solid Minerals Development minister, Mr Dele Alake, South-West speakers of State Assemblies, Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon Akin RotimiYoruba nation activist, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, the Onikoyi of Ikoyi-Ekiti in Ikole Local Government Area of the state, Oba Moses Akinwande Ogundana.
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon Akin Rotimi, wept intermittently on Tuesday while moving a motion on the gruesome killing of the two traditional rulers.
Leading the motion of Urgent National Importance entitled: ‘The need for security agencies to urgently stem the tide of criminality ravaging Ekiti State,’ Rotimi also underscored the need for the security agencies to put all measures in place to rescue the schoolchildren and teachers.
Rotimi, who observed that there has been an increase in criminal activities in Ekiti North 1 (Ikole/Oye) Federal Constituency in recent times, resulting in the loss of lives and property, argued that his federal constituency is “exposed to peculiar security challenges due to the nature of our forests and topography, and more painfully because Ekiti Federal roads are some of the most dilapidated in the entire country.”
Condemning the killing in statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, Tinubu described the killing of the traditional rulers as mindless and brutal bloodletting, just as he pledged that the perpetrators would not escape justice.
According to the statement, “It is with grief that President Bola Tinubu receives the news of the killing of two traditional rulers in Ekiti State, the Onimojo of Imojo-Ekiti, Oba Olatunde Samuel Olusola, and the Elesun of Esun-Ekiti, Oba David Babatunde Ogunsola.
“President Tinubu condemns this mindless and brutal bloodletting and pledges that the perpetrators will not escape justice.
“The President condoles with the families and subjects of the traditional rulers, Governor Biodun Oyebanji, and the people of Ekiti State on this deeply agonizing development.
“In the same vein, the President directs the immediate rescue of pupils and teachers kidnapped around Eporo-Ekiti area of the State.
“As security of life and property is the primary responsibility of government, President Tinubu assures Nigerians that the nation’s security architecture is being robustly fortified for better and expected outcomes.”
“President Tinubu condoled with the families and subjects of the traditional rulers, Governor Biodun Oyebanji, and the people of Ekiti State on this deeply agonising development.
“In the same vein, the president directed the immediate rescue of pupils and teachers kidnapped around Eporo-Ekiti area of the state.
“Tinubu assured Nigerians that the nation’s security architecture is being robustly fortified for better and expected outcomes as security of life and property is the primary responsibility of government.”
Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji condemned Monday’s dastardly attack in Oke-Ako area, Ikole Local Government, which led to the gruesome killing of the two royal fathers.
He ordered security agencies in the state to fish out the killers.
The two traditional rulers- the Onimojo of Imojo Ekiti, Oba Olatunde Samuel Olusola and the Elesun of Esun Ekiti, Oba David Babatunde Ogunsola were killed in an ambush by armed men while returning from a meeting.
The third traditional ruler, the Alara of Ara –Ekiti, Oba Adebayo Fatoba escaped the attack.
Oyebanji, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, said security agents have been dispatched to the area to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous crime.
The Governor, who had just presided over the state security council meeting in Ado-Ekiti, barely an hour before the incident occurred, said no stone would be left unturned in a bid to bring the perpetrators to justice.
He expressed the condolences of the Government and people of Ekiti State to the people of Imojo Ekiti and Esun Ekiti over the sad incident.
The Governor also urged the people of the two towns to remain calm and refrain from taking the laws into their hands.
Government, he said, would ensure that justice was served.
Oyebanji charged security agencies in the state to remain vigilant and resolute in the efforts to stamp out crime and criminality from the state.
Also, the governor vowed to rescue the pupils, their teachers and driver who were kidnapped on Monday in Emure Ekiti.
He charged the citizens of the state not to despair over the incident, assuring that efforts are on to get the children and their teachers rescued.
Six pupils of a private school in Emure-Ekiti, three teachers and the bus driver were abducted while returning to Eporo- Ekiti, Monday evening.
The Governor, who described the kidnapping of the school pupils, as callous and unacceptable, said nothing would be spared in the efforts to rescue them.
According to a statement by the Governor’s Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, security agencies in the state are already on the trail of the abductors with a mandate to bring the pupils and their teachers back safely.
Oyebanji said security is being stepped up across the state with a view to flushing out criminal elements from their hideouts.
While calling on the citizens to remain calm and vigilant, he urged them to cooperate with security agencies, by making available relevant information to the authorities.
Also, shocked Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba land, Iba Gani Adams, on Tuesday, described the killing of the two Ekiti monarchs as highly condemnable and a piece of shocking news to the entire Yoruba race.
The Yoruba generalissimo said this in his reaction while speaking with the Nigerian Tribune on the telephone, noting sadly that such an occurrence where two Yoruba Obas were killed on the same spot had never been witnessed in the history of Yoruba race.
According to Iba Adams, if such had ever occurred, it probably would have occurred during “the time of Empire, maybe when there was a war in Yoruba land.
“It’s highly condemnable; it is shocking news to the entire Yoruba race. We have never witnessed such in the history of Yoruba that two Obas were killed on the spot. If that happened, it would be during the time of Empire, maybe when there was a war in Yoruba land.”
Reacting, the immediate former Ekiti State Governor and chairman of Nigerian Governors Forum, Dr Kayode Fayemi condemned the senseless killings, saying kidnapping crises require national approach.
In a statement on Tuesday, Fayemi said the attack depicts the worrisome height kidnapping and killings have hit in recent times in the country, saying all hands must be on deck to tame the trend.
He said, “It is with profound sadness and deep sorrow that I condemn the senseless killings of Kabiyesi Elesun of Esun Ekiti and Olumojo of Imojo Ekiti which occurred yesterday, Monday, January 29.
“I express my deepest condolences with the government and people of Ekiti State following this unfortunate incident. My heart aches for the families, friends, and communities affected by this appalling act of violence, as such acts of violence have no place in our society.
“The country has witnessed an upsurge in the activities of kidnappers since the start of the new year and Ekiti State, which has been relatively peaceful, also appears to be experiencing an increase in this heinous criminality.
“While urging the security agencies to take decisive actions against these marauders, it is clear that we need an all of society approach in solving this national problem.”
Also, the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Lekan Balogun, expressed deep concerns over incessant killings, kidnappings and other vices nationwide, just as he asked security agencies to “up their games.”
Oba Balogun made this remark in a press statement made available to reporters in Ibadan by his Personal Assistant (Media), Oladele Ogunsola, while reacting to reports of a series of incidents bothering on insecurity.
The monarch was particularly pained by the killing of two traditional rulers from Ekiti State.
Yoruba nation activist, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, on Tuesday described the killing of the traditional rulers as horrible, disheartening and sad, just as he urged the Federal Government to empower local security organisations through the instrumentality of law to tackle insecurity in the South-West.
Reacting to the incident during a telephone chat with the Nigerian Tribune, Adeyemo said all tiers of government should rejig the nation’s security architecture in order to contain growing cases of insecurity in the country.
He said, “It is disheartening and sad for Yoruba monarchs to be mowed down on the streets. It is absurd and strange. These are parts of the issues that prompted me to agitate for a better and secure Yorubaland before the agents of state attacked me in 2021 at my residence under the administration of former president, Muhammadu Buhari.
“Bandits, terrorists and other criminal elements have taken over some of our communities and forests in the South-West and we have been raising the alarm before now, but no action has been taken by relevant authorities.
“The Federal Government should strengthen our local security organisations like Agbekoya, vigilante groups and Amotekun Corps through the instrumentality of law and allow them to bear sophisticated weapons in order to withstand the firepower of the hoodlums.”
Reacting, the Onikoyi of Ikoyi-Ekiti in Ikole Local Government Area of the state, Oba Moses Akinwande Ogundana, commiserated with the families of the traditional rulers.
In a condolence message he personally signed, Oba Ogundana said: “It is with a heavy heart that I extend my deepest condolences to the families and communities mourning the loss of their traditional rulers. Their reigns were marked by wisdom, compassion and dedication to the wellbeing of their people.
“Their absence will be deeply felt and their legacies will endure as guiding lights for generations to come.
“As we grieve their passing, we must also address the pressing issue of security in Ekiti State.
“The recent rise in violence and the proliferation of gunmen pose a grave threat to the safety and stability of our communities. In light of these challenges, I urge the government to equip and support the Amotekun Corps in their efforts to safeguard the lives and property of the people and make them man the flash points across the state.
On their own, the South-West Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures in the country, in reacting to the development, further advanced the calls for multilevel policing (state police) to curb the deteriorating security in the country.
A delegation of the South-West State Assemblies Legislative heads made the call on Tuesday when they visited the Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Honourable Adebo Ogundoyin, at the state chamber in Ibadan.
The delegation, led by the chairman of the zone and Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Honourable Adeoye Stephen, said the recent recurring cases of abductions and killing ravaging the country have strongly necessitated the need for state policing.
The Oyo Assembly Speaker, who disclosed this in a tweet on his verified handle on Tuesday, said the delegation also used the opportunity to advance the call for regional legislative integration and the need for synergy and cross fertilisation of legislative ideas among others.
Leader of the Senate, Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, has challenged security agencies to fish out the killers of the traditional rulers.
Bamidele also condemned the abduction of pupils and teachers, demanding their accelerated rescue by combined security agencies.
In a statement by his Directorate of Media and Public Affairs on Tuesday, the senate leader demanded unconditional release of other kidnap victims, tasking security agencies to go after the abductors.
Bamidele also condoled with the people of the affected communities and the entire state over the killing of the monarchs.
He also promised that he would use the instrumentality of legislation in collaboration with Ekiti State governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, to ensure the security of lives and property in the state.
Bamidele described the abductors of the schoolchildren as heartless and said the kidnappers must not go unpunished when arrested.
Also, Solid Minerals Development minister, Mr Dele Alake, called on security agencies to fish out the assailants and ensure they face the law.
Alake, in a condolence message to the governor and people of Ekiti State, called on the police high command and the Department of State Services (DSS) to rescue the primary school pupils from Emure-Ekiti who were kidnapped on their way from school at Eporo-Ekiti.
