With the festive rush drawing closer, security chiefs from Oyo, Ogun, Lagos and Osun have revealed that deepened collaboration and strategy have begun ahead of the Yuletide season.
The strategic security meeting held on Friday November 28 at McPherson University in Seriki-Sotayo, for what has now become an annual coordination and behind-the-scenes planning to secure bordering corridors among the states.
This year’s meeting however, carried a slightly different weight as it was the first time four South West states would sit together under one roof to map out a collective response to security threats around their border corridors.
Addressing newsmen after the closed-door meeting, AIG Olushola Subair (rtd.), Special Adviser on Security to the Ogun State Governor, explained that the gathering marked the fifth edition of the inter-state security engagement that began between Oyo and Ogun.
The expansion to include Lagos and Osun, he said, reflected both the changing security landscape and the need for a wider shield.
He noted that the upcoming festive season always comes with heavier traffic, higher economic activity and the return of Nigerians from the diaspora. It is a period security agencies treat with caution.
“We want to give our people the assurance that our states are safe for this season,” he said, adding that the four states had agreed on actionable steps to keep major roads, border communities and public spaces secured.
When pressed for details on the specific measures adopted, Compol Fatai Owoseni, Special Adviser on Security to Governor Seyi Makinde and Chairman of the Oyo State Security Trust Fund, declined to go beyond broad contours. “These are security matters,” he said. “We can’t place the details in the public space.”
The states, he said, had reviewed the strategies deployed last year, evaluated gaps along their shared corridors and strengthened weak points saying: “We’ve looked at the threats across the country and asked ourselves how the South West can remain the safest region,” he said.
One of the agreed steps is a joint show of force along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, a corridor that has previously recorded cases of kidnapping and highway attacks.
The states will also reinforce collaboration with traditional rulers, local government structures and community-based security networks to keep their response lean and proactive.
Earlier, in his welcome remarks, Subair traced the meeting back to the previous joint session held in November 2024 at Dominion University, where both states reviewed developments on the expressway, assessed deployment performance and adopted short-term measures for the festive period.
The current gathering, he said, was to review what had been implemented and tighten any remaining loose ends.
He stressed the commitment of both Ogun and Oyo to maintaining a unified front saying: “Security is the foundation of sustainable development, and our progress in infrastructure and investment can only stand on a strong, coordinated security architecture,” he said.
The Vice-Chancellor of McPherson University, Professor Francis A. Igbasan, in his opening remarks, said incidents of kidnapping, clashes, smuggling and trafficking, demand cooperation rather than isolated responses.
“Criminals don’t respect state boundaries, they move seamlessly across our borders, exploiting gaps in coordination and intelligence. So collaboration is not just desirable, it is essential,” he stated.
He pledged the continued support of the university community through research, data and other intellectual resources that can strengthen security institutions.
Present at the meeting were representatives of the all the security agencies including the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Airforce, NSCDC, FRSC, Nigerian Correctional Service, and Amotekun Corps.