Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday, assured residents that his administration would make further efforts to strengthen the security architecture of the state so as to ensure that every space of the state is secure.
He gave this assurance at the grand finale and Laying of Wreaths of the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day, held at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan.
The PUNCH reports that gunmen invaded Forest Guards at Old Oyo National Park in Oloka, in the Oriire Local Government Area of the state, at about 11:30pm on Tuesday, January 6, and killed five NPS officers in their office.
Makinde expressed appreciation to the officers and men of the Armed Forces for securing the state, urging them not to relent in their efforts.
The governor stressed that plans were afoot to set up a welfare scheme for the families of the five forest guards killed recently at the Oloka Village axis of the old Oyo National Park in Oriire Local Government Area of the state.
He equally assured that his administration would continue to remember and support maimed soldiers, widows, orphans and other dependants of the fallen heroes, because they paid the ultimate price to keep the country safe and secure.
“I can only say thank you to the officers and men of the Nigeria Armed Forces. This is a challenging time for us as a nation. We are still dealing with all sorts of security challenges and they have been trying their best. We have asked them to do a lot more with very little resources and they have been doing their bit. I want to urge them not to relent.
“I want to say that for us, as a government, we will continue to give the necessary support to ensure that it is not a hardship posting for them. For Oyo State, a few days back, we had an incident at the Old Oyo National Park where some forest guards were killed.
“We commiserate with their families and we will do our best to ensure that they are looked after. It is not time to play the blame game. We won’t leave any stone unturned until we keep every inch of space and land in this state safe and secure,” he promised.
Earlier, the state Interim Chairman of Nigerian Legion, Julius Alabi, lauded the Federal Government and the State Government for the improvement of Legion members’ welfare and for other support.
The ceremony witnessed the laying of wreaths at the remembrance cenotaph by Governor Makinde; Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Adebo Ogundoyin, represented by the Deputy Speaker, Mohammed Fadeyi; the state Chief Judge, Iyabo Yerima and the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja.
Others who laid the wreaths were the General Officer Commanding, 2 Division Nigerian Army, Major General C.R Nnebeife; the state Interim Chairman of Nigeria Legion, Julius Alabi; Commander, 2 Division Garrison, Nigerian Army, Brigadier-General A.S Bugaje; the Commander 655, Nigerian Air Force Station, Ibadan, Air Commodore D.U. Njoku; the state Commissioner of Police, Femi Haruna and a representative of the widows of the fallen heroes, Taibatu Bello.
The occasion also witnessed the 21-gun salute in honour of the fallen heroes, special prayers for the repose of the fallen heroes and the release of ceremonial pigeons by the governor and the inspection of the parade guards by the governor.
The event had in attendance the state Deputy Governor, Bayo Lawal; former Deputy Governor, Hamid Gbadamosi; former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Monsurat Sunmonu; Secretary to the State Government, Musibau Babatunde; Chief of Staff, Segun Ogunwuyi; Head of Service, Olubunmi Oni; Deputy Chief of Staff, Kazeem Adeniyi; and Commissioner for Women and Social Inclusion, Toyin Balogun; among other top government functionaries.
Others were legionnaires and widows of the fallen heroes and their children.
Makinde pledges to strengthen Oyo’s security
