South moves against northern bandits

Posted by admin Headlines, Latest Politics, South-East, South-South, South-West, Top Stories Monday, December 8th, 2025

By Dayo Johnson, Rotimi Ojomoyela, James Ogunnaike, Adeola Badru, Alemma Aliu, Olasunkanmi Akoni, Steve Oko and Egufe Yafubougi

As bandits from the North push farther toward the fringes of the South, security anxieties have deepened across the southern corridor, stretching from the thick forests of Oke-Ogun in Oyo to the oil-rich creeks of the Niger Delta.The widening arc of bandit movements, according to multiple findings by Sunday Vanguard, now touches strategic boundary points in Kwara, Kogi, Benue, Niger and parts of Edo, stirring unprecedented fear among southern communities.

From Oyo’s decision to deploy traditional hunters into deep forest belts to Enugu’s adoption of drone surveillance, and from Rivers’ fortified marine security units to Ondo’s reactivation of Amotekun strike operations, southern states are no longer treating the threat as distant.

They are responding with a mix of technology, community policing, legislative reforms, inter-agency operations and, where necessary, traditional security structures that draw from native knowledge of the terrain.

Urgency

Recognising the urgency of the escalating threat, South-West governors recently convened an emergency meeting in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, to coordinate responses to the bandit incursions.

The gathering underscored the immediate need for a unified security strategy across the region, with each state expected to bolster patrols, strengthen intelligence networks and ensure rapid communication between agencies.

Officials noted that the fluidity of the bandit movements required swift, proactive measures to prevent any foothold from being established within southern territories.

The forum also highlighted the importance of collaboration with non-state security actors such as Amotekun, traditional hunters, and community vigilante groups.

The region governors agreed that without such integration, state security agencies alone would struggle to cover the vast forested and border areas, particularly along Oke-Ogun, Akoko, and other vulnerable corridors.

Emphasis was placed on preemptive rather than reactive operations, signalling a significant shift from previous ad hoc responses.

Jurisdictional gaps

Beyond the South-West summit, the Southern Governors Forum, recently, backed the state police commands and their ongoing operations, reinforcing the legitimacy of law enforcement actions.

In a joint communiqué, the forum expressed full support for intensified patrols, rapid deployment of reinforcements, and strategic positioning of checkpoints to seal known entry points. Officials also stressed that intelligence-sharing protocols across the 17 states in the South must be tightened to prevent criminals from exploiting jurisdictional gaps.

Traditional rulers across the South-West had also thrown their weight behind the security initiatives, committing to work closely with both state agencies and community security structures. The monarchs pledged to mobilise local networks for intelligence gathering, monitor suspicious movements, and enforce community-level compliance with security directives.

They reiterated that maintaining peace and preventing infiltration was a collective responsibility, blending modern security strategies with the unique knowledge of their local terrains.

VANGUARD