Ekiti State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has lamented the spate of suspected assassinations in the state in the last one week, saying that the development is not unconnected with lax security measures, short of political will, to protect residents from avoidable deaths.
Within the last one week, three men, including a police officer, had lost their lives to circumstances believed to be assassinations.
A Superintendent of Police, Idowu Taiwo, was on Sunday night killed and abandoned in his car, handcuffed, after three gunmen abducted him at a relaxation joint along Ikere-Ado road in the state capital.
The following day, Kunle Enisan, an engineer, was also abducted on his way home along Afao-Ado road, Ado-Ekiti and his dead body found the following day, sparking anger and outrage that shook the state capital.
Earlier on Saturday, Wale Adeniyi, a graduate entrepreneur in Ikere-Ekiti, was found dead along Iju-Ikere road after an encounter with gunmen.
Speaking through its state Publicy Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the APC lamented the sudden upsurge in the murders of residents, blaming the development on lack of adequate security measures.
It said: “It is regrettable that while Ekiti people thought that the era of assassinations was over, a new trend, never witnessed in the crime record of the state, suddenly emerged in the last one week.
“Within three days, three people were murdered by assailants without any trace of their movements or suspicion of their motives for carrying out such murderous activities and it is regrettable that up till now, security agencies don’t seem to have any clue to the causes of the incidents.”
Olatunbosun blamed the situation on inadequate security and lack of political will to secure the lives and property of the residents, adding, “We have always cried out on the misplacement of priorities by Governor Ayodele Fayose in his administration’s policy.
“We once cried out over the governor’s refusal to fund security agencies to enable them perform optimally to secure the lives and property of the people.”
The APC said operation vehicles were in bad shape, with security agents lacking necessary logistics, while the officers and men of the security agencies were not motivated to do their jobs.
The APC said, “From available information, Governor Fayose has not spent one naira to strengthen security of the state in the last six months; and he has also refused to help in keeping security gadgets in shape to enable the police function effectively.
“For instance, the multi-million naira Police Crime Detection/Tracking Device facility inaugurated by former Governor Kayode Fayemi at the State Police headquarters in Ado-Ekiti has collapsed and all entreaties to Fayose to provide funds to put the machine in shape fell on deaf ears.”
Olatunbosun said that if the facility was working, a simple call to the Control Room would guide security agents on the location of the crime and nip it in the bud like was the case during Fayemi’s tenure.
He added: “Fayose provides streetlights between 7pm and 10pm every day and sometimes for shorter periods over excuses of lack of money to procure diesel to power the streetlights, yet the governor always claims to spend N210 million on diesel monthly; but the actual figure of supply as obtained from NUPENG suppliers indicated that only N7 million worth of diesel was supplied monthly to power the streetlights.
“Meanwhile, the governor collects N250 million monthly as security vote and we wonder which security he maintains with N250 million monthly while criminals have taken over the state to kill and harass helpless residents.”
The APC spokesman berated Fayose for neglecting the security of the residents for personal comfort, saying that as criminals stalk residents in the night under the cover of darkness, Government House generators provide light for the governor 24 hours daily.
The APC added, “On assumption of office, Fayose accused Fayemi of building a new Government House that is lit 24 hours, vowing that he won’t live in such a luxury while Ekiti people live in darkness.
“But today, Fayose is not only living in that luxury with regular power supply, but has also abandoned the people to darkness where they are regularly robbed of their belongings and in the last one week murdered in cold blood.”
