The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has issued a grave warning about escalating security threats facing Nigeria, particularly the South-West region. Speaking in an interview monitored by SaharaReporters at his Lagos residence, Adams stated, “We are in a situation that our country is on a serious security threat. What is happening in most of the states now calls for concern.” He further disclosed, “We got information from a very serious authority that we have been highly infiltrated in the South-West by these terrorists in most of the communities in Yorubaland.”
Adams elaborated on the activities of armed groups in nearby Kogi and Kwara states, describing these areas as “buffer zones to the South-West,” and alleging that the armed groups were “testing the ground to start the major attacks.” He warned, “The information at our disposal is that they want to attack Oyo, Ekiti, Ondo and Lagos State.”
Pressed on the identity of the perpetrators, Adams linked the impending threat to well-known armed factions operating in northern Nigeria. According to him, “They are the same people you see attacking people every day in various parts of the country. In some cases you call them bandits, in some cases Fulani herdsmen.” Adams went further, “But when you talk of international terrorist organisations, we have ISIS and ISWAP in Nigeria. We also have Boko Haram. These are the main groups, but we have different pockets that broke away from them.”
He asserted that the attacks involve coordination by “some foreigners,” saying, “I can tell you authoritatively that this thing is being coordinated by some foreigners. It goes beyond Nigerians.” Adams attributed the motivations behind these acts to a combination of political, economic, and ethnic factors, noting that each group “had its own ideology and objectives.”
Commenting on the broader security situation, Adams expressed shock at recent remarks by the Benue State Governor dismissing claims of religious persecution in the Middle Belt. “Even we that are not living in the Middle Belt are seriously concerned about the incidents happening in Benue and Plateau states. On a daily basis, we get information of attacks in different communities.” He argued that the ongoing violence in various communities could reasonably be interpreted as genocide, stating, “When a race is attacking another race, trying to wipe them out of a system or community, or state there is no way you wouldn’t classify it as genocide.”
Security agencies have yet to respond to Adams’ claims. The warnings serve as a fresh call to action for government and security authorities to address immediate threats and restore peace in the South-West and elsewhere in Nigeria.
