Abuja / Multiple States — December 7, 2025 | Dalena Reporters
As terrorists from the North continue to push deeper toward southern Nigeria, states across the southern corridor from the forests of Oke-Ogun in Oyo to the oil-rich creeks of the Niger Delta are scrambling to strengthen security, fearing the widening arc of criminal movement could destabilise entire communities.
Authorities say the surge in bandit activity now touches strategic border zones in Kwara, Kogi, Benue, Niger and parts of Edo, triggering an unprecedented wave of fear among southern residents.
Responding to the threat, several states have launched fresh measures combining technology, community policing, inter-agency collaboration and traditional security arrangements. In Oyo State, for example, licensed traditional hunters have been deployed into deep forest belts to patrol vulnerable borderlands.
Meanwhile, in Ondo State a newly relaunched anti-crime initiative Amotekun Corps — named “Operation Le Won Jade,” is running 24/7 patrols across all 18 local government areas, with special focus on schools and known kidnapping-prone towns.
Other states are leveraging modern tools: in Enugu, drone surveillance has been adopted to monitor suspicious forest and border zones; Rivers State has fortified its marine security units to patrol waterways and creeks; and Imo State has moved to close off abandoned forest tracks suspected of harbouring armed migrants.
At a recent emergency meeting in Ibadan, governors from South-West states agreed to coordinate a regional security strategy — strengthening joint patrols, boosting intelligence sharing, and formalising collaboration between state police, Amotekun, vigilantes, and traditional hunters.
Officials described the new approach as pre-emptive rather than reactive a marked shift from past responses. “These measures are deliberate steps designed to secure the forests before infiltration can take deep root,” said one state government spokesperson after border-town posts were reactivated and new operatives recruited.
As communities brace for possible spillover from banditry and terror networks, the success of the southern security push now hinges on vigilant intelligence work, resilient community cooperation, and sustained government commitment to protecting vulnerable border areas.