The spokesman for the House of Representatives, Akin Rotimi, has raised the alarm over the continued closure of banks in his constituency owing to incessant attacks by hoodlums.

Mr Rotimi, representing Ikole/Oye Federal Constituency in Ekiti, raised the alarm while addressing reporters in Ikole-Ekiti on Friday, shortly after meeting 5,000 constituents and sharing yuletide gifts with them.

He attributed the withdrawal of commercial bank operations in Ikole-Ekiti and environs to the security challenges in the area.

The constituency has been facing security challenges in recent years, resulting in several cases of bank robberies, with their attendant loss of lives.

The lawmaker, however, assured his constituents of concerted efforts to restore normalcy to the area with full resumption of banking operations.

“As at today, there is no single bank operating in Ikole- Ekiti because of the state of insecurity. This is something that needs to be corrected.

“I want to pledge that we will make efforts to ensure that financial institutions return to Ikole-Ekiti.

“I want to commend the security agencies, that is, the police, the army, civil defence and DSS; they are doing a wonderful job with the support of the state government,” he stated.

Nonetheless, the lawmaker acknowledged that the rate of insecurity had reduced “because of the ongoing efforts, but we will continue to try our best, as we are still very far from achieving our aim.”

At the event, the lawmaker distributed 3,000 bags of rice to his constituents to relieve them of the current economic hardship.

(NAN)