- Meets with police, DSS, others
A socio-cultural organization, Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union, has said that no fewer than 30 residents of Ilorin have died in the renewed hostilities between rival cult gangs in the Kwara State capital since January.
It alleged that the 30 victims were killed in resurgent inter-cult violence and reprisals in Ilorin and its environs.
The IEDPU, which decried the alleged killing of the over 30 persons in the last six months in series of violent attacks carried out by rival cult groups in various parts of the state, described the development as “barbaric and unwarranted.”
Speaking during an emergency security meeting held at the IEDPU National Secretariat in Ilorin, its President, Alhaji Abdulhamed Adi, noted that with the renewed violence, the Ilorin Emirate, which was reputed for peace and harmony, had been turned into a war zone.
It added that areas like Okesuna, Edun, Agbo-Oba, Gada, Stadium Road, Gambari and Ajikobi had been the worst hit by cult violence in recent times.
The union said, “The level of criminality in the state capital is getting worrisome as more than 30 lives have been wasted in the last six months.
“We are, therefore, urging members of the various communities in the emirate to expose suspected members of secret cult groups in their areas in order to reduce the spate of callous killings and for peace to reign in the state”.
Also speaking, IEDPU Security Committee Chairman, Ambassador Usman Abdulazeez, said unless members of every community volunteer to purge their areas of crimes, the anti-cult war and other insecurity challenges might be difficult to win.
While applauding the efforts of security agencies in the state at combating crimes, the organisation reiterated the fact that insecurity was antithetical to development.
It stressed that all hands must be on deck in order to put a stop to crimes and other nefarious activities in the state.
The meeting was attended by the representatives of the police, the Department of State Services, vigilance group and metro security initiative, a brain child of IEDPU.
