The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has warned newly recruited operatives of the State Security Network Agency codenamed “Amotekun” to work within the ambits of the law.
He said this on Thursday at the launch of the South-West Joint Security Outfit “Amotekun”, held at the Arcade Ground, Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
Abiodun noted that the establishment of the outfit by the Governors of the South-Western states in 2020 was to checkmate the rising wave of crime and criminalities in the geo-political zone.
He emphasised the need for the security outfit under the supervision of retired Commissioner of Police, Mr David Akintemi as commander, to synergize with existing security agencies to protect the lives and property of the people.
“As they say, ‘to whom much is given, much is expected’ I expect nothing less than a superlative performance of duties from our operatives. They must diligently add value to strengthen the security of lives and property in Ogun State.
“In doing this, the operatives of the Amotekun are also expected to carry out their duties within the ambit of the provisions of the law establishing the outfit.
“You are also subject to the law, not above the law. Let the rule of law be your watchword and ensure that you respect the rights of citizens and residents of the state. Let me be clear – your role is primarily to prevent crime.
“You are to do this through systematic intelligence gathering and collaboration with other law enforcement agencies, especially the Security Network Agencies of other states, Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NAPTIP, NDLEA, Customs, Immigration, DSS and others,” Abiodun added.
The governor urged the people of the state to cooperate with the operatives of the new outfit in providing necessary information about any unscrupulous element or group that might want to undermine the peace of the state.
He insisted that the security outfit was not created for the purpose of competition but to complement other agencies.
The highlight of the ceremony was the decoration of the Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka as Special Marshal Amotekun.
Soyinka in his goodwill message also corroborated the governor not to see the establishment of Amotekun as a replacement to other security agencies.
“You must accept them and work with them. Amotekun is not a replacement of the police, others. What people can contribute to this initiative is monitoring.
“We will be watching you very closely to make sure you did not trample on people’s rights. Don’t start to misbehave because of the uniform. If you misbehave in your uniform before Ogun (god of iron) strikes you, we would have dealt with you.”
The Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, in his remarks, appreciated the state government for providing the funds and other logistics for the successful take-off of the security outfit.
