Civil Society Group Calls on South West Governors to Establish Regional Security Trust Fund

Governors of the South West states have been urged to set up a regional Security Trust Fund to address insecurity in the zone.

A group operating under the aegis of the Alliance of Yoruba Democratic Movements (AYDM) said in a statement issued in Lagos yesterday and signed by its general secretary, Mr Popoola Ajayi said the fund should be managed by non-state actors selected by each of the six states in the region.

The AYDM is an alliance of over 130 pan-Yoruba and community based groups in largely Yoruba territories including Kwara, Kogi, Akoko Edo and Itsekiri part of Delta State.

The group said it estimates that the South West states should be able to realise no fewer than N100 billion in the first six months of its launch.

The group said no single state in the west can resolve insecurity without networking with others in the region.

Ajayi said the funds should be raised from contributions of state governments, corporate organisations, Yoruba in Diaspora, individuals, professional and artisan groups resident in the West.

“There are some 60 million people in the South West. Every adult from the age of 18 years resident in the West should be encouraged to contribute a minimum of N500 to the Fund. This will be invested in providing necessary material and training for Amotekun, while creating and building a strong Intelligence Bureau that would tackle all varieties of crime in the region, ” the AYDM said.

AYDM said part of the fund should be used to set up security posts in all the borders across the region and also established a training school on intelligence and counter-intelligence, adding that it would aid the ability of the region to prevent crime before and not after the acts have been committed.

The group said the West is the most industrialised in Nigeria and continues to witness mass migration of people fleeing from other parts of Nigeria, the Maghreb and even Sudan who see the region as an economic haven.