LAGOS – The Afenifere National Youth Council (AYC) has issued an impassioned plea to President Bola Tinubu, urging him to declare a state of emergency in the Southwestern region of Nigeria to combat the escalating wave of kidnappings and killings that have gripped the area. In a detailed letter addressed to the President, the group’s leader, Prince Eniola Ojajuni, highlighted the dire security situation, drawing from his own harrowing experience as a kidnapping victim to underscore the urgency of the crisis.
The call follows a disturbing surge in abductions and brutal murders across the Southwest, with Ondo State emerging as a particular hotspot. Ojajuni, who was kidnapped last month in Akunnu, Ondo State, and held captive for 12 agonizing days, painted a grim picture of the region’s descent into lawlessness. “Ondo State, once known for its rich agricultural activities, has now become a danger zone where farmers no longer feel safe accessing their farmlands,” he wrote. “Criminal elements have turned our forests into ransom negotiation camps, while major roads, especially the Lagos-Abuja expressway, have become death traps for innocent travelers kidnapped daily for ransom.”
Ojajuni’s personal ordeal exemplifies the terror faced by many in the region. Abducted on February 17, 2025, he endured 12 days and nights in the wilderness without food or clean water, suffering AK-47 gunshot wounds that left him bleeding and untreated. “The excruciating pain I endured was inhumane,” he recounted. “It is only by the grace of God that I survived.” Beyond the physical scars, the psychological toll lingers—sleepless nights, constant fear, and distressing flashbacks triggered by sudden noises. “This is the reality of many victims, and it could happen to anyone,” he warned.
In his letter, Ojajuni outlined a nine-point action plan to address the crisis, calling for immediate and decisive federal intervention. “The level of insecurity in the Southwest has gone beyond a crisis; it is a full-blown war against innocent Nigerians,” he stated. His demands include:
1. Declaring a total state of emergency on insecurity in the Southwest, particularly in Ondo State.
2. Deploying a special military operation to reclaim forests from kidnappers and criminal elements.
3. Strengthening border security to prevent the influx of criminal herders and terrorists.
4. Equipping and empowering local security agencies, such as Amotekun, to combat these threats effectively.
5. Implementing long-term security reforms for lasting peace and stability.
6. Investigating the flow of ransom payments to trace their destinations.
7. Increasing security surveillance in Lagos and Ondo States, focusing on abandoned buildings with high fences and locked gates.
8. Engaging youth associations in the fight against insecurity, including mandating political office holders to hold regular town hall meetings in their local government areas.
9. Mandating Southwest Governors to collaborate and strengthen security networks, with an urgent call for a Southwest Youth Security Summit.
Ojajuni also revealed chilling insights from his captivity, noting that the kidnappers collaborated with tech-savvy youths who used ICT knowledge to track and monitor mobile devices. “Some of these individuals are locals who speak Ondo dialects and Yoruba fluently, acting as spies for these criminal elements,” he disclosed. This revelation has heightened concerns about internal collusion in the region’s security crisis.
The AYC president has already written to the Governor of Lagos State, pressing for an urgent Southwest Governors’ Forum meeting on security and youth engagement. However, he emphasized that only a strong federal directive can ensure swift, collective action. “As the father of the nation, now is the time to take decisive action,” he appealed to President Tinubu. “Our roads are unsafe, our forests are hijacked, and our people live in fear.”
The escalating insecurity has sparked widespread alarm across Nigeria, with groups like the Arewa Youths Consultative Forum echoing calls for urgent measures. As the Southwest grapples with this unprecedented threat, all eyes are on the federal government to see how it will respond to the Afenifere Youth Council’s desperate cry for help. For now, residents of the region remain on edge, hoping for relief from the terror that has turned their once-peaceful homeland into a battleground.
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