Obaseki defies IG, recalls vigilante

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has directed members of the Edo State Security Network to resume regular duties, in the wake of the deteriorating security situation in the state.

The directive may put the governor on a collision course with the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, who placed a ban on the vigilante before the state governorship election held on September 21.

The Inspector General of Police, in the build-up to the governorship election, banned the security network from operation in the state.

Members of the opposition All Progressives Congress had fingered personnel of the network in the killing of a police Inspector, Akor Onuh, of MOPOL 45 Abuja, an orderly attached to its governorship candidate and now governor-elect, Monday Okpbholo.

The police orderly was killed at the airport, during a welcome reception for the deputy governor of the state, Philip Shaibu, after the Appeal Court nullified his impeachment and reinstated him to his position.

Following the hostilities and tension in the state, a few weeks to the election, the IGP banned the security network to allow peace to reign.

Obaseki protested the decision, as he even faulted the IG order, with the PDP and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, refusing to sign the peace agrement.

In a press statement on Tuesday, the Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Nehikhare, said the governor gave the directive for the resumption of duty of the security network, after undertaking a review of the recent rise in homicide in the state.

The statement read, “Governor Godwin Obaseki has directed members of the Edo State Security Network to resume their regular duties in the wake of deteriorating security situation in the state.

“The governor gave the directive after the State Security Council meeting on Monday, during which the council undertook a review of the recent rise in homicides and other security incidents in the state.

“The government noted that the current state of insecurity in the state would not be tolerated, and the Edo State Commissioner of Police has been mandated to ensure the restoration of order and sanity in the state.

“Obaseki restated the state government’s commitment to ensuring the safety of lives and property in the state.”

In the past three weeks, many lives have been lost to renewed cult war in the state, while the battle for land also intensified in some parts of the state.

When contacted, the Force Spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, promised to get back after finding out the true position of the matter.