MOVING THE SOUTHWESTERN NIGERIA SECURITY FORWARD: HEAR FROM 'CONSCIOUS' GOVERNOR, GBOYEGA OYETOLA OF OSUN, :By Adewale Kehinde (Prime Prince)

Current politics in the western Nigeria, namely: Osun, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti and Lagos state respectively has further broadened the definition of security, in a regional perspective. It has been proposed that security requires shared determination and meaning of its importance to their people in the South West geopolitical zone of Nigeria.  Defining the Concept of Security may be considered as assured freedom from poverty or want, precautions taken to ensure against theft, espionage or a person or thing that secures or guarantees (Collins English Dictionary and Thesaurus ,1992). According to Fischer and Green, ‘security implies a stable, relatively predictable environment in which an individual or group may pursue its ends without disruption or harm and without fear of such disturbance or injury.

 A traditional defnition of security may be the provision of private services in the protection of people, information and assets for individual safety or community wellness as seen in the local vigilantes, the Agbekoyas, the local farmers and what have you. In addition, private or commercial security may be considered as the provision of paid services in preventing undesirable, unauthorized or detrimental loss to an organization's assets. However, security in the hearth of our Excellences, Governors, security is being expanded to consider, state policing to wit a sound national security and mostly the defence of the southwestern States, through armed force to control states citizens and properties. Implying public policing, with state employed public servants.

 Nevertheless, security may present very different meaning to different people, given the time, place and context. Security has strong parallels with defence, as they both provide protection. An example may be the parallelism dem-onstrated through police and military organizations, with the increasing convergence. Recently at the South West Security Summit, Governor, State of Osun Mr. Gboyega Oyetola has made it clear that insecurity and other criminal tendencies have no ethnic and religious colouration, therefore,the issues have to be addressed with all decisiveness and in accordance with the law.

Speaking in Ibadan on tuesday at a Stakeholders' Security Summit with a Focus on the South West, Governor Oyetola observed that for South West to remain safe, the States in the region must collaborate and share information to collectively secure the people. Noting that security chiefs also need to share information among themselves, the Governor regretted that the nation is grossly under policed and under funded. He disclosed that the Police have said the Force needs 155,000 more men to effectively police the nation. Mr. Oyetola took a swipe at the preponderance of security wars on the social media, urging brother governor to proactively address the issue. He made it known that Osun has always addressed security matters with a high level of resoluteness such that it was ranked the safest State in Nigeria.