Leave our forest now, OPC warns bandits, kidnappers

The Oyo State chapter of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) has warned criminals allegedly residing in a reserve forest in the OkeOgun area of the state to leave the state, or “they would be arrested and their sponsors exposed.”

The OPC stated that investigation by its members indicated that some bad elements had invaded the state.

The Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland and National Coordinator of the OPC, Iba Gani Abiodun Adams, last week raised an alarm that armed terrorists had occupied Kishi, Igboho and the old National Park in Oyo State.

The coordinator of the OPC in Oyo State, Comrade Rotimi Olumo, in a statement in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, yesterday, said Gani Adams had instructed him and his foot soldiers to relocate to the National Park “to protect the people of Oyo State.”

Olumo stated, “It saddens one’s heart that in the past few days, these armed terrorists have engaged in kidnapping and are even threatening the livelihood of our people in that area. We are battle ready and their sponsors will be exposed.

“My boss, the Aare Onakankanfo, has directed me to relocate to Oke-Ogun and ensure that the OPC dislodges terrorists and kidnappers in that axis. This is part of the reasons OPC was established - to protect and fight for the rights of the Yoruba people. We will not fold our arms and allow terrorists and kidnappers to destroy our land.”

He added that the OPC was ready to collaborate with all relevant security agencies to ensure there was peace in the Southwest.

“I have called on all the local government coordinators in that axis to be at alert,” the Oyo State OPC leader said.