The Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has raised an alarm over the growing wave of terrorist attacks in states bordering the South-West, warning that Yorubaland is increasingly vulnerable to full-scale incursions.
In a statement made available to ENigeria Newspaper, its National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi said the recent spate of attacks in Kwara, Kogi, and Niger states, together with kidnappings in Ondo, Ekiti, and Oyo states, indicates a troubling trajectory for regional security.
He recalled the horrifying raids in Woro and Nuku communities, Kaiama LGA, Kwara State, which left nearly 200 people dead and many others abducted.
“Bandits also carried out attacks in neighbouring Kogi, Edo, Niger, Benue, Plateau, Kaduna, and Katsina states,” Ajayi said.
According to Afenifere, abductions are no longer limited to rural areas. The schoolgirl kidnapped in Ibadan was seized in broad daylight while her mother dropped her off at school in the Challenge area, along the Lagos-bound axis of Ring Road.
Ajayi noted that similar incidents in Ondo, Ibadan, and Kaduna took place in metropolitan settings, showing that terror has spread beyond remote villages.
The group urged governors in the South-West — Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Lagos — and their counterparts in Kwara, Kogi, Edo, and Delta states to act decisively to ensure residents can “sleep with their two eyes closed.” Ajayi reminded that during the November 24, 2025, South-West governors’ meeting in Ibadan, measures were approved to strengthen security, including the creation of a South-West Security Fund (SWSF) and monitoring centres.
“The persistence of terrorism is not due to a lack of intelligence,” Ajayi stressed. “Information on bandits and terrorists exists, but it is not processed for the people’s benefit. In many cases, it serves the interest of those who are clearly the enemies of the people.”
He cited Alhaji Umar Bio Salihu, head of Woro village, who revealed that a letter warning authorities of an imminent attack had been sent before the raid occurred, yet the assault went unprevented.
Ajayi concluded with a call for urgent action: “The problem is not absence of information but failure to act on it. State police must respond immediately, and communities should be empowered to implement local security arrangements.
“South-West governors must move beyond words and take decisive steps to make the region genuinely safe.”
