By Maroof Asudemade

The recent kidnapping of teachers and students in Oriire Local Government Area of Ogbomoso has understandably heightened anxiety across Oyo State and the entire South-West. The outrage is justified. Citizens have every right to demand immediate and decisive action against the criminal elements seeking to import the culture of banditry and kidnapping into a region long regarded as one of the most peaceful in Nigeria.

However, in moments of fear and anger, societies must resist the temptation to embrace solutions that may ultimately prove more dangerous than the problem they seek to solve. One such proposal is the growing call for the empowerment of non-state actors to confront bandits and kidnappers.

History teaches us that armed groups created outside the formal structures of the state often begin with noble intentions but end up becoming threats to the very communities they were established to protect.

Across Africa and beyond, examples abound. In Libya, the proliferation of armed militias after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi transformed the country into a battleground of competing forces, making national stability almost impossible. In Somalia, warlords and clan militias contributed to decades of lawlessness and violence. Closer home, some vigilante and militia groups established to combat crime in various parts of Nigeria later became instruments of political intimidation, extortion and human rights abuses. What begins as community protection can easily mutate into a monster that neither the government nor the people can control. The Bakassi Boys in the south-south and OPC in the south-west of Nigeria readily comes to mind. We were witnesses to how the groups started on a good note but ended up becoming terrors to the regions they sought to protect. It took former President Olusegun Obasanjo to clip the raging wings of the groups when they went haywire and vindictive.

The danger lies in the fact that non-state actors operate outside the constitutional chain of command. They are often poorly regulated, inadequately trained and not subject to the strict rules of engagement that govern the armed forces and the police. Once armed and empowered, such groups can develop independent interests, settle personal scores, engage in ethnic profiling or become tools in the hands of desperate politicians.

The South-West must be particularly careful. The region has a rich tradition of communal harmony, commerce and democratic engagement. It should not become a theatre where competing armed groups emerge under the guise of protecting communities. Such a development would create more insecurity, not less.

This is not to suggest that communities have no role in securing themselves. Intelligence gathering, neighbourhood vigilance and timely reporting of suspicious movements are essential. Traditional rulers, community leaders, hunters and local security networks can provide valuable information to security agencies. But there is a clear distinction between supporting law enforcement and creating alternative armed structures that challenge the state’s monopoly on the use of force.

The Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force remain the constitutionally recognised institutions for confronting violent criminals. Despite legitimate criticisms of manpower shortages, logistics and response times, they possess the training, legal authority, intelligence infrastructure and operational experience required to combat organised criminality. What is needed is greater support, improved coordination, enhanced funding and stronger collaboration between security agencies and local communities.

The kidnapping at Oriire should serve as a wake-up call, not an excuse to abandon constitutional safeguards. The federal and the state governments must strengthen security architecture in vulnerable areas, improve surveillance of forests and rural corridors, deploy more personnel to hotspots and ensure that those responsible for the kidnapping are swiftly apprehended and prosecuted.

Nigeria’s battle against banditry will not be won by multiplying armed groups. It will be won by strengthening state institutions, improving intelligence gathering and ensuring that the military and police are adequately equipped to discharge their responsibilities.

The understandable anger generated by the Oriire incident must not push society towards a cure that is potentially worse than the disease. The lesson from history is clear: when non-state actors are empowered to bear arms in the name of security, they often outlive their usefulness and become security threats themselves.

The South-West must therefore stand firmly behind the Nigerian Army, the Police and other recognised security agencies. With adequate support, intelligence and political will, they possess the capacity to nip the emerging threat of banditry and kidnapping in the bud and preserve the peace and stability for which the region is renowned.