Kwara residents have accused Nigerian Army and Department of State Services (DSS) operatives of abandoning them to deadly terrorist attacks, claiming security personnel openly admitted they could not confront the gunmen because the criminals had superior weapons.
This was revealed in a video obtained on social media, where community leaders lamented that villages across Ifelodun Local Government Area remained under siege despite promises of government intervention.
One of the leaders, speaking in Yoruba, stated that the government’s response had been cosmetic while lives were being lost.
“All governments in Kwara State, please help us. All the traditional chiefs and monarchs, please speak with one voice and meet the governor. Tell him that this issue of insecurity is now beyond what we will be playing with,” the community leader cried out.
He explained that a condolence visit to Oke Ode following a recent attack revealed the continued terror facing villages such as Sagbe and Alarola. According to him, residents disclosed that security personnel deployed after the killings refused to chase the attackers into the bush.
“They said the security agencies sent by the governor after the incident, most of them have gone back. The residents said the security personnel and the SSS (State Security Service, also known as DSS) officials said they could not enter the bush to confront these terrorists,” he said.
“They said they did not give them the order to enter the bush. And that even the weapons the terrorists are using are superior to their own. So, the security operatives only paraded Oke-Ode town and left,” he said.
The community leader further lamented that attacks had continued even after the supposed deployment of troops.
“Even yesterday, we still learned that these terrorists invaded Arola and killed people, and also kidnapped. This shows the issues are yet to be resolved, and we are begging the Kwara Government to help us,” he said.
The media on Tuesday also reported that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State had been accused of downplaying insecurity after his media aides circulated old photographs of Nigerian Air Force (NAF) airstrikes in Borno State, presenting them as recent military operations against terrorists who attacked communities in Ifelodun Local Government Area.
The controversy erupted after residents of Oke-Ode and surrounding villages were left in shock following the recent attacks that claimed over 12 lives and forced many to flee their homes.
While pressure mounted on the state government to act, the governor’s Senior Special Assistant on New Media, Olayinka Fafoluyi, popularly known as Solace, posted images of military bombardments on his Facebook page, claiming they were part of “multiple airstrikes” conducted by the NAF in the state.
According to Fafoluyi’s post, the Air Task Force of Operation “OPFY Sector 3” carried out reconnaissance and close air support (CAS) operations in Kakihun, Oke-Ode, Babanla, and surrounding communities, targeting suspected bandits and terrorists east of Babanla.
He described the alleged airstrikes as a major deterrent to further attacks in Kwara South.
However, a fact-check by SaharaReporters revealed that the images shared were not from Kwara but from Borno State.
The photographs were traced back to a NAF operation under Operation HADIN KAI, which took place in Bula Marwa, near Siraja village in Borno State, on October 25, 2024.
During that operation, airstrikes reportedly killed multiple Boko Haram terrorists. PRNigeria first published the images on October 28, 2024.
Olayinka said, “Nigerian Air Force Air Task Force OPFY Sector 3 has conducted multiple airstrikes in Kakihun, Oke-Ode, Babanla and surrounding areas in Kwara State.
“Recce + CAS ops were executed as threat deterrence & bandits/terrorists seen at East of Babanla were targeted in airstrikes.”
However, Kwara residents argue that presenting old images as recent military success in Kwara amounts to propaganda aimed at calming public outrage after terrorists invaded Oke-Ode, killing at least 12 residents and displacing many families.
The misleading post has fueled anger among citizens who accuse the state government of downplaying the severity of the security crisis in Kwara South.
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