Your Excellency Sir,
It is with heavy heart that I write this letter to you. My heart is grieved by the unending sorrow bequeathed my people by the criminals (rapists, looters, kidnappers and murderers) that many have chosen to call “bandits” in order to be politically correct.
You may recall that indigenes and residents of Ibarapa conducted a peaceful protest to the Oyo State Secretariat last December. Our movement, tagged Ibarapa Youths One Voice was hinged on the insecurity bedeviling our region. You graciously asked your Deputy to receive us, and subsequently had some of your aides to interact us. We believed that the deployment of Amotekun Corps into our region was one of the outcomes of our engagement with your government.
We are however perplexed that while there was no statement from your office when our people were being traumatized and victimized, we were recently graced with your speech. You reminded us that any Nigerian can live anywhere within the country and perform their businesses. Are you aware that our people cannot live as they wish in our innermost communities because of criminals? Do you know that our people cannot perform their businesses (farming) as usual because of the risk of being kidnapped or slaughtered?
Please remember that the same constitution you swore to defend lays the responsibility for protecting the lives and properties of our people upon you. What happened to that responsibility? Did you also swear to help marauders plunder our communities?
For the avoidance of doubts, I do not, in any way, subscribe to resolving issues through violence. You could have called the leader of the people with preponderance of violence to order and mandate him to produce culprits among his people. Instead, you came out to warn our kings. Congratulations!
We have been calling for an end to the incessant killing, maiming, raping and kidnapping of our people for years. Mr. Governor, we do not know about you lending your voice to our cry. Which part of our cry was exaggerated? Was it the destroyed livelihoods, the rape, the maiming, the kidnappings or the killings? Do you have the number of people who have been victims and have suffered unbearable losses to these criminals? Have you visited our people to commiserate with them while mourning? What has been done about the 49 herdsmen who were caught with deadly weapons and handed over to the police last week?
To add salt to sore injury, you called our region, “Ibarapa,” Oke Ogun. Why? Mr. Governor, Why? If your speech writer(s) did not recognize the difference between Ibarapa and Oke Ogun, we expected that Your Excellency would have mentioned Ibarapa, which is the hotspot of the criminality, in your speech. We believe that you know Ibarapa because you came to campaign in our region for the election that brought you into office. This is a grave insult upon us as a people.
I wonder what our people that are working with you tell you about security of lives and properties in Ibarapa region of Oyo State.
Your Excellency Sir, please dignify your office once again by responding appropriately to the cry of bereavement from Ibarapa. Your name will be remembered for the outcomes of this episode.
Thank you sir.
Engr. David Olusegun Okanlawon
January 22, 2021
