By Kayode Olabanji

The President of the Afenifere National Youth Council, Prince Eniola Joseph Ojajuni, has urged President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency on insecurity in the South-West, particularly in Ondo State

Ojajuni, who made the call in an open letter personally signed by him, recounted his harrowing 12-day ordeal in the den of kidnappers, during which he sustained gunshot wounds and suffered severe physical and psychological trauma.

He lamented how criminals had turned the region’s forests into negotiation hubs for ransom payments, while highways, particularly the Lagos-Abuja expressway, had become unsafe for travellers due to incessant abductions and armed attacks.

The youth leader urged President Tinubu to take decisive steps to reclaim the region from criminal elements, stressing that the situation had reached a boiling point.

He listed urgent measures needed to tackle the crisis, including the deployment of special military operations to flush out kidnappers from forests, tightening border security to prevent the influx of criminals, and equipping local security outfits such as Amotekun.

Ojajuni also called for a clampdown on ransom payment channels, particularly Bureau de Change operators allegedly involved in ransom transactions, as well as increased surveillance in Lagos and Ondo states.

Other recommendations include fostering collaboration among South-West governors, organising a Youth Security Summit, and mandating town hall meetings between political officeholders and local communities to address security concerns.

He expressed concern that many kidnappers in the region had local ties, spoke fluent Yoruba, and exploited advanced ICT tools to track and abduct victims.

“The level of insecurity in the South-West is no longer a crisis; it is a full-scale war against innocent Nigerians,” Ojajuni warned. “Today, it is me; tomorrow, it could be anyone else.”

He, therefore, urged President Tinubu to act swiftly, noting that the people of Ondo State and the entire South-West were looking up to the Federal Government for urgent intervention before the situation spiralled further out of control.