Community leaders in Kwara State have urged the direct allocation of security votes to local governments to improve responses to rising insecurity. Speaking in Abuja on Sunday, members of the Offa Security Committee, led by retired Air Vice Marshal Abdul-Ganiyu Olabisi, highlighted increasing attacks in Kwara North and Kwara South that have forced communities to rely on self-funded vigilante efforts. Olabisi said the Offa community operates a legally permitted vigilante unit that conducts intelligence gathering and patrols, funded entirely by local contributions.
He disclosed that the community spends over N10 million monthly on salaries, vehicles, motorcycles, fuel and logistics without government support. "Monthly, the community spends over N10 million on security operations without any form of government support. This is not sustainable," Olabisi said. He urged the government to directly allocate security votes to local governments to strengthen grassroots security and ensure faster responses.
Olabisi argued that such funding would enhance transparency, accountability and local capacity to counter threats. He noted that while the push for state police is commendable, it may take years to implement, leaving communities vulnerable in the interim. "We cannot wait for years while communities are under attack. Immediate intervention through direct funding is necessary," he said. The appeal follows a rise in attacks, killings and displacement in parts of Kwara State, where formal security presence remains limited.
Abdul-Ganiyu Olabisi leads a community spending N10 million monthly on security while demanding government funding, yet offers no breakdown of how those private funds are managed. If transparency is a reason for demanding official security votes, the same standard must apply to the Offa vigilante's own finances. Residents paying into an unaccounted-for security fund face the same risk they are being asked to mitigate. The call for government funding cannot ignore accountability at the community level.
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