THE issue of insecurity that is destroying the fabric of Nigeria has received positive action resulting in drastic reduction in Ondo State in recent times due to the perseverance and dogged efforts of Amotekun Corps in the state.

HOWEVER, the situation with insecurity in Elegbeka area and entire Ose Local Government Area of the State has assumed a worrisome dimension with unending breaches where innocent citizens are being abducted freely and taken hostage for ransom or killed with impunity.

IN their free for all engagement, the kidnappers have made Elegbeka, a sleepy town in Ose local government area, the Bermuda Triangle of our time where constant abduction and deaths take place.

THE Bermuda triangle also known as Devil’s Triangle is an area noted for the disappearance of ships and planes without a trace. Thus, Elegbeka like the dreaded Bermuda Triangle is fast becoming notorious for disappearance of people by the criminal activities of kidnappers that abduct them for ransom. However, while victims of Bermuda Triangle are never found, the victims of Elegbeka can be recovered when ransom are paid.

RECENT incidents in the area indicate a resurgence of kidnapping especially abduction of passengers for ransom that is increasingly becoming a threat to human security and economic activity. Many individuals including a first-class monarch had even been killed in the area until the recent abduction of some Christian worshippers travelling for a burial programme by gunmen.

AT the moment, many people avoid the area for fear of been kidnapped or killed by the dangerous kidnappers and bandits that have found easy abode for their evil operations in the area. This precarious and unacceptable height of insecurity in the area has become worrisome and attracting the attention of many concerned individuals and agencies within and outside OndoState. 

THE unending kidnapping in Ose local council has great consequences in that it causes social disruption especially the distress it causes victims, economic disruptions as many farmers abandon their farms and political implications including public dissatisfaction with the authority that could result in protests and disorder in the society.

THE unending kidnapping in the area is possible due to the bad road condition of the Owo-Ifon highway, the dense forest found in the area that provided cover for the criminals as well as ineffectiveness of the security agencies in the area due to poor and inadequate facilities and the vast unmanned or poorly manned boundary between Ondo and Edo States. The kidnappers easily move to Edo State for cover against the onslaught of Amotekun Corps in Ondo State. The nightmare created by incessant cases of kidnapping and armed robbery in the area must be stopped forthwith to protect and safeguard lives and welfare of people.

THE security agencies that have been alledged of conspiracy must wake up to their responsibilities of protecting the lives and property of the residents and travelers along the route. The police Anti-kidnapping squad and other security agencies must double their efforts to rid the area of the dreaded kidnappers that have destroyed the economic activities of the residents.

THE locals have a duty to cooperate and support the security agencies in their efforts to arrest the situation while the government at all levels need also to support the security agencies with logistics and other material things that would aid in ridding the area of kidnappers. The government should also investigate the activities of the security agencies in the area to eliminate possible compromise by them in the continuing security breaches in the area.

THE damaged Ifon-Owo highway that permits the flourishing of kidnapping in the area need to be urgently reconstructed to make it motorable and there is the need for cooperation between Ondo and Edo states to curb the activities of the kidnappers. Finally, people should limit their social mobility; they should not travel in groups with vehicles inscribed with their organizations’ names and logo for obvious security reasons.