Pan-Yoruba Group raises Alarm over Influx of Migrants to Lagos

Fri, Aug 17, 2018 | By publisher


Security

Yoruba Koya Movement, a pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group says foreigners from neighbouring countries and migrants from the North want to takeover Lagos State 

By Anayo Ezugwu

YORUBA Koya Movement, a pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, has raised alarm over the influx of migrants to Lagos State. The group said a minimum of 500 migrants come into the state everyday from the northern states of Borno, Katsina, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto and Yobe State.

At a Security Roundtable organised by the group, with the theme:  Protecting Yoruba Land: Migrant Incursion and Threat to Peace and Security of Lagos State” Deji Osibogun, convener of the movement, said 7,356 migrants mainly from the aforementioned states came to Lagos alone in the month of June 2018 without verifiable place of residence. He said the first point of call and destination for the migrants is usually Yaba-Oyingbo axis from where they are distributed across the land.

According to him, these migrants litter the streets of Lekki, Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Ikeja, Yaba, Shomolu and Bariga. Other places he listed include, Oshodi, Ejigbo, Egbeda-Idimu, Agege, Ojodu-Berger, Alagbole-Akute in Ogun State to Magodo Phase I and II, and Festac, and they are currently making an inroad into Badagry.

“80 percent of commercial motorcyclists plying Ojodu-Alagbole-Akute are from the core northern states. It is the same secenario in Lekki, Ikeja, Oshodi, Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Obalende, Ajah, Amuwo Odofin and other major area of Lagos State. But unfortunately, our Yoruba people are apathetic in the face of this danger.

“We think we are enjoying almost free labour from these migrants; we feed them; some of them are now marrying our vulnerable daughters; we are doing all these because we are friendly and accommodating. Unknown to us, these migrants have ulterior motives – to annex all lands in Nigeria. All our towns and villages in Yoruba land are in danger of being taken over by non-indigenes.

“Fulani herdsmen are buying lands in Iseyin, Igbeti and other parts of Oke Ogun in Oyo state. They are now the notable traders in Owo; they are installing Obas in Iseyin. Investigations conducted by our undercover research team have it that these invincible Fulani men have bought about 50 houses in Agege area of Lagos for only God knows reason. In some cases, they buy the houses but leave the tenants there. We say very expressly that there may be an Emirate soon in Oko Ogun area of Oyo state, the Yewa area of Ogun State and Agege here in Lagos if care is not taken,” he said.

On his part, Prof. Banji Akintoye, Second Republic senator, said the only way to address incursion of migrants was to restructure the country. “We have reached a point in many villages in the south-west where people find it difficult to live their normal lives out of fear of being attacked by herdsmen. The painful thing is that, most of these herdsmen are not Nigerians but come from other neighbouring countries,” he said.

Akintoye said the Yoruba people were not against other people coming to their lands but that, as a people and a race, will resist people coming into their lands to destroy lives and property.  The professor lauded KOYA for the initiative, noting that it was young men of vision who liberated the society.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, who was represented at the conference by Kunle Ajanaku, his special adviser on Security and Intelligence, called for collective vigilance to boost security at the grassroots and the use of various security platforms to address insecurity in the state. He said that the state government would work with Law enforcement agencies, traditional institutions and religious bodies to police the neighbourhood closely. “The state government has taken certain classified actions to insulate residents from any unforeseen situation,” he said.

Ambode said the actions include sustained liaison with the immigration service and other security agencies to monitor and profile the various cluster of settlers across the state. “The immigration service at the moment has embarked on massive sensitisation for those with genuine documents to come forward for documentation.

“As a government, we shall enhance collective vigilance at the grassroots, using our security platforms, law enforcement agencies in conjunction with traditional institutions and religious bodies to police our neighbourhood closely.”

According to Ambode, the state government would continue to strengthen the police and other law enforcement agencies by developing their capacity to enable them respond adequately to emergencies. “Our security team in Lagos State is also working with the security team of the south-west, established by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria, DAWN, commission, to ensure security is at its top notch.”

– Aug. 17, 2018 @ 16:05 GMT |

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