A socio-cultural group, Ooye Development Initiatives, has asked the Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa to prioritise safety of lives and property of the people.

In a statement on Tuesday, the group’s president, Tokunbo Jegede, decried the upsurge in cases of kidnap-for-ransom, robbery, and killings of the people, especially in Akure by bandits. 

Mr Jegede explained that kidnapping and killings in some parts of Akure and the state capital had become increasingly frightening.

He noted that the situation necessitated the call on the state government to protect the lives and property of the ordinary people, adding that the development also required urgent intervention.

“We as a group call on the state government to act swiftly in restoring peace and order in these areas. Our people are too vulnerable to the attacks of these nefarious individuals who seem to have a field day in shedding innocent people’s blood, killing and maiming without the government coming to their aid,” said Mr Jegede.

He said the areas where the killings and kidnappings happen in the state are agricultural economic hubs, while complaining that the situation was not only frightening away investors but crippling the state economy.

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Reminding the governor of its role in ensuring adequate security in the state, the group said when Mr Aiyedatiwa’s government failed to adequately play its role, it left the people with no choice but to result in self-help.

“The people of Akure North and South and indeed the generality of Ondo State want to feel the government’s protective hands in their day-to-day activities. Today, they can’t feel them. If this trend continues, the people may have to be their own government, and the implication of this is that we may land in the Hobbesian world where life is nasty, brutish, and short,” the statement indicated.