Otukpo-Adoka Road: Another safe haven for armed robbers gradually proliferating

It was a gory scene midnight of Saturday 24th August, 2019 along Otukpo-Ogobia-Adoka road as two groups of well armed robbers took over the road for hours, shooting sporadically and engaging the military bolstered by some police personnel in a show of fire power while trying to rob commuters plying the road.

In defiance, the non state actors were heard shouting ”If una strong make una stand na”, meaning the security personnel shouldn’t run away if they could stand their firepower.

Surprisingly, the military and police personnel were seen retreating in a rapid manner as a result of their inferior firepower.

A driver of a Dangote trailer and his conductor became the instant victims of the carnage as they met their untimely death.

As I was passing there at exactly 9:16am, I saw two trailers burning and some passerby standing in confusion.

In the vehicle I boarded from Obagaji to Otukpo, all the passengers were speaking in unanimity saying ”Its appalling and unbelievable that all forms of Insecurity have skyrocketed under an Ex-General, prior to his emergence as a democratically elected president of Nigeria, was believed to be the only solution to the emerging security threats then.

While the murmuring was continuing, my mind quickly jumped to the allegations by Gen TY Danjuma that the military were colluding with the perpetrators of insecurity and the one by the notorious kidnap kingpin in Ibi, Taraba state,Alh ”Why-Do-Me, aka Wadume that the APC leaders were sponsoring him.

From Abia to Zamfara,same lamentation of Killings,Kidnapping,Highway Robbery,Armed Banditry and terrorism.

How did we come to this pathetic level of insecurity?

(Credit: Olikita Ekani)