Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, on Friday, donated 25 operational vehicles, fully equipped with communication gadgets, to the security agencies in the State in order to beef up security during the yuletide season.
While 10 of the vehicles were donated to the Swift Response Squad (SRS), a unit of the Nigeria Police Force, the remaining 15 were donated to the Operation Burst, a state-backed joint security task force team comprising the military, police and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
While donating the vehicles at the frontage of the Presidential Lodge, Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, the Governor reiterated that his administration would continue to prioritise the welfare of security personnel and remain committed to supporting police officers and security personnel serving in the State, as well as members of their families.
Makinde said, “This is a period when, irrespective of what people have been doing from the beginning of the year till now, they still want to have a merry Christmas. Yes, we have had a challenging year, Covid-19 from the beginning of the year, then economic meltdown and #EndSARS protests. We will not say that because of those challenges, we will not continue to do what we are supposed to do.”
The Special Adviser to Governor Makinde on Security, Mr Fatai Owoseni, a retired Commissioner of Police, said security is one of the pillars of the Makinde administration and that the government has been closing the infrastructural gaps in the security sector to make Oyo State safer and secure for all and sundry, adding that the operational vehicles would further strengthen the infrastructure of the two outfits.
Owoseni stated, “Security is one of the pillars of His Excellency’s dynamic administration. And of course, to that end, you have been doing all that is required by closing the infrastructural gaps of the security agencies to make Oyo State safer, secure and investor-friendly. You have always been granting the requests of all the security outfits in Oyo State.”
Similarly, the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Joe Enwonwu, appreciated the Governor for being there always for the Oyo State Command of the Nigeria Police Force, pledging the readiness of his officers and men to sustain and embolden the security status of the State and provide a conducive atmosphere for both the local, institutional and foreign investors to thrive in the State.
He said, “We have just come out of Covid-19, #EndSARS protests and the consequent carnage that has devastated the economy of not only the nation but particularly that of Oyo State. And as we are coming out, we are really taken aback that Your Excellency is able to provide additional vehicles to reinforce the security arrangement for Oyo State.”
Enwonwu assured that with the new set of vehicles, the Police would do their level best to reinforce security and make sure that people can confidently come out, do their businesses and sleep with their two eyes closed.
“During the operational tour of the IGP, he spoke to the officers and made it abundantly clear that we should all come out confidently to give the best of security to the people of Oyo State. And we should put behind whatever had happened during the #EndSARS protest that led to the loss of lives. We have actually taken that in our strides,” he noted.
Enwonwu disclosed the Police is presently doing training and retraining in two mobile platforms of MOPOL 4 and MOPOL 72, Ago- Are, with a view to reinforcing and rebuilding confidence in the officers and men of the Oyo State Command.
