The House of Representatives requested the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Usman Alkali, to put in place machinery to stop the recurrent bank robberies in Osun State, particularly in the Odo–Otin/Ifelodun/Boripe Federal Constituency, yesterday.
Mr. Rasheed Afolabi, the congressman representing the constituency, had moved a motion at the plenary on Thursday condemning the frequent assault on banks in the region.
In a motion titled ‘Call to Address the Menace of Persistent Bank Robberies and Threat to Lives and Property of the People of Odo–Otin/Ifelodun/Boripe Federal Constituency of Osun State,’ Afolabi noted that four bank robberies had occurred in the last three years within three local government areas.
He said: “The House notes the persistent and unabated rate of deadly armed robbery attacks targeted at banks in Odo–Otin/Ifelodun/Boripe Federal Constituency, which has paralyzed economic activities.
“The House also notes the recent robbery attack on September 28, 2021, where criminals invaded and looted Wema Bank, Iragbiji in Boripe Local Government Area, killing innocent Citizens.
“The House further notes that the dastardly robberies started on February 12, 2016, when three commercial banks, namely Skye Bank (now Polaris), First Bank, and Union Bank, were simultaneously robbed in Ikirun, Ifelodun Local Government Area, the headquarters of the federal constituency and killed 10 people to the carnage.
“The House observes that within this year, three distinct bank robbery incidents had taken place in the remaining two LGAs that made up the federal constituency, thus subjecting residents to perpetual fear, economic woes as a result of the relocation of all the banks to neighbouring communities several kilometres away from Odo–Otin/Ifelodun/Boripe constituency.”
Adopting the motion, the House “urged the Inspector-General of Police to develop and put in place formidable security apparatus, mechanism, and strategy, including efficient backup response to prevent the persistent occurrence of armed robbery attacks within the constituency.”
The House also urged the IGP and other relevant authorities to relocate the 39th MOPOL Unit to Ikirun, Ifelodun Local Government Area headquarters, “where the unit was to be located to curtail the escalating crime rate in the area.”
Ada Peter
