Yoruba Nation activist Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, has directed volunteers of the Iru Ekun Security Network operating across the South-West to intensify efforts against kidnapping, banditry and other forms of criminality in communities and farming settlements.
Igboho gave the directive on Saturday in Lagos while inaugurating the Lagos chapter of the community-based security initiative, urging volunteers to sustain the recent decline in abductions for ransom and other violent crimes across the region.
The activist, according to a statement issued by his media office, said the group’s activities must remain within the ambit of the law and should be focused on protecting residents rather than creating additional security challenges.
‘No Room for Criminals’
Igboho said Iru Ekun volunteers must confront and checkmate individuals who threaten peace and security in the South-West, regardless of their ethnic or religious background.
He said the objective of the network was not to target any particular ethnic or religious group but to support efforts to protect communities from criminal elements.
The latest directive expands on Igboho’s push for community-based security structures across the South-West.
The initiative has already been launched in other states, including Ogun, where Igboho inaugurated the state chapter in August. Reports from the Ogun launch indicated that the organisation envisaged training, discipline and cooperation with government security authorities.
Igboho has previously said the Federal Government would determine who would train members of the organisation, while state authorities would determine where trained members would be deployed.
That approach is significant because the activities of community security groups can raise questions about jurisdiction, accountability and the relationship between civilian volunteers and formally established security agencies.
Focus on Rural Communities
The latest instruction places particular emphasis on agrarian settlements and rural communities, areas that have frequently faced security challenges linked to kidnapping, banditry, farmer-herder tensions and attacks by criminal groups.
Igboho said the reduction in kidnapping and banditry must not be allowed to reverse.
He urged volunteers to remain vigilant and work within the law while helping to identify and confront threats to residents.
The emphasis on legality is important because community-based security initiatives operate in an environment where citizens may be willing to assist in protecting their communities but must avoid taking the law into their own hands.
The Iru Ekun initiative therefore faces the challenge of combining local intelligence and community vigilance with proper coordination with the police and other recognised security agencies.
A Growing South-West Security Debate
Security remains a major political and social issue across the South-West.
Although the region has generally experienced lower levels of large-scale insurgency than parts of northern Nigeria, kidnapping and criminal activity in rural communities have remained persistent concerns.
The emergence of Iru Ekun reflects growing calls for local participation in security.
Supporters of community-based security structures argue that residents often have better knowledge of local terrain and can identify suspicious movements more quickly.
Critics, however, may raise concerns about training, oversight, use of force and the potential for vigilante activities to become politicised.
For Iru Ekun, its ability to operate effectively will therefore depend partly on how closely it works with established security institutions and state governments.
Igboho Calls for Sustained Security Gains
Igboho’s latest directive suggests that he intends to make security a central component of the network’s activities.
He called on volunteers across Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo and Ekiti to work toward what he described as the total eradication of kidnapping, banditry and other criminal activities.
The activist also stressed that the network’s intervention should be based on the principle of protecting peace and stability rather than ethnic or religious considerations.
As the organisation expands across the region, attention will increasingly focus on how its volunteers are trained, supervised and integrated into the wider security architecture.
For now, Igboho is urging his volunteers to intensify their presence in vulnerable communities and ensure that recent improvements in the security situation are sustained.