Amid rising insecurity across the country, hunters and farmers have called on the Federal Government to formally empower them to flush out bandits, Boko Haram insurgents, and other criminal elements hiding in forests.

The groups, including the Nigerian Forest Security Service, Professional Hunters Association of Nigeria, Agbekoya Farmers? Society of Nigeria, and the Oodua Peoples Congress, insisted that they possessed the spiritual ability, knowledge, training, and presence in forests to combat terrorists.

There has been a resurgence of terror attacks in the country, particularly in Plateau and Benue states.

No fewer than 51 people were killed last week by gunmen in Zikke and Kakpa communities in the Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State, two weeks after deadly clashes in another part of the state left many others dead.

Prior to last week?s attack, gunmen killed at least 52 people and displaced nearly 2,000 others after several days of attacks on six villages in Plateau.

The National Emergency Management Agency said 52 people were confirmed dead, while 22 others were taken to a hospital.

Reacting to the killings, President Bola Tinubu issued a marching order to security agencies to tackle insecurity in the country.

Tinubu also ordered a complete overhaul of Nigeria?s security strategy.

But the groups said while forest-based crimes were on the rise, especially in border states, local hunters and guards remained a critical but underutilised force to stem the tide of insecurity.

Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the Commandant General of the Nigerian Forest Security Service, Joshua Osatimehin, warned that failure to secure the forests would continue to pose a serious threat to national security.

Osatimehin stressed that without federal recognition and legislation, forest operatives could not take decisive actions against criminals in the bush.

He said, ?We understand the forests; some of our operatives live there, but we cannot just attack the marauders without the government?s backing so that we will not be charged with genocide and other forms of illegal operations.

?As soon as the government decides to give us the necessary backup, this will give us the confidence to deploy all our arsenals ? physically, spiritually, and otherwise to dislodge these people (bandits and kidnappers) because those causing this insecurity are few compared to Nigeria?s population. We can defeat them with the necessary backup and support from the government.

?If we have the logistics support and the security infrastructure at least at our level to man our forest points, these killings will drastically reduce.?

The commandant pointed out that porous borders were a major reason foreigners continued to infiltrate the country to wreak havoc.

?But our operatives work in these forests; we farm and hunt in these forests. This will make it easier to form a first line of defence before the military or the police can come in,? he added.

While acknowledging that some forest operatives had spiritual means of protection, Osatimehin insisted that lawful backing and proper training would be prioritised.

The National Secretary of the Professional Hunters Association of Nigeria, Danladi Perry, stressed the urgent need for intensified patrols and surveillance, especially along known forest routes often exploited by attackers.

?The spate of killings in Benue, Plateau and other northern states would have been prevented if the Federal Government had engaged professional hunters, forest guards and local vigilantes to man our forests, because most of the attackers? route is the bush. We need to intensify patrols and surveillance. Of course, we are brave and ready for the task. We need support to facilitate and improve patrols. Also, the bushes around us should be checked regularly,? he added.

The Secretary-General of the Agbekoya Farmers? Society of Nigeria, Adegbenro Ogunlana, said his men were already deploying spiritual means against insecurity across the South-West states to secure the region.

He noted that if not for the fetishes being made, there would have been serious problems.

Ogunlana stated, ?They would have been picking us from our houses to kill us. We had our meeting at Shepeteri in Oyo State. The Ifa oracle instructed us to carry out certain sacrifices across South-West states because our people have a hand in the issues we are facing.

?We have arrested some individuals from our communities who were aiding these terrorists. They can?t operate without help from insiders.?

He further stated that the essence of the spiritual means was to restore peace in the region.

?We have turned to spiritual means. We?ve started from Kogi and Kwara, and we?ll extend to the South-West states. Though Kogi and Kwara are in the North, we have Yoruba communities there, and they are also affected by the security challenges.

?The problem with the Yoruba nation right now is the lack of a central leader. Our government does not want self-defence, but these people killing us work with these things.?

Responding to whether he would invoke spiritual means against insecurity, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, said such was a personal decision.

Adams, however, hinted that work was ongoing ?beneath the surface.?

He said, ?All I know is that the wave of insecurity is coming. It has started all over the country. If 70 per cent of people in Kwara State are Yoruba, then the issue is affecting us gradually.

?What happened in Ondo State, and part of Ekiti State, is giving us serious concern; we are having issues of skirmishes in this area.?

The Yoruba leader noted that he was consulting with a few elders about the situation.

?There is information that they have infiltrated Ibadan; notwithstanding, I am discussing with a few elders. We also have an intelligence report that these terrorists have infiltrated Yoruba land. They have infiltrated our communities, especially the ones with solid minerals.

?This is because they are privy to the information of the Ministry of Minerals to know the communities that have lucrative solid minerals. Most of the communities they have attacked are the ones with solid minerals. Our politicians aren?t doing anything about the issue.?

On his part, the Commander of Patrol and Guards, Nigeria Forest Security Service in charge of North-Central, Alhaji Muhammad Ahmed, stated that the security challenges bedeviling the country would be a thing of the past if President Tinubu assented to a bill before him.

According to him, the Nigeria Forest Security Service, formerly known as Nigerian Hunters and Forest Security Service, has spiritual solutions to Nigeria?s security challenges.

?We have spiritual solutions to Nigeria?s security challenges. Our real (local) hunters have the spiritual powers. You know we have the real hunters and the administrative ones. We are the administrators; those who are educated,? Ahmed stated.

He explained that the bill in question was aimed at legalising the operations of the group, which included the deployment of local hunters with spiritual powers to tackle security challenges.

The commander said the bill had been passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives and was before the President for assent.

Ahmed explained that the local hunters, who were part of the group, would deploy spiritual means to tackle insecurity.

He expressed confidence that once the bill was signed into law, the issue of insecurity would be a thing of the past.

?It (insecurity) will be obliterated because the real hunters know the terrain where the terrorists operate in the forests and they have been encountering the terrorists in the forests.

?We are appealing to the President to sign the bill legalising our operations into law so that we can play our role in tackling security challenges. Because the Nigeria Hunters and Forest Security Service have a lot to offer,? Ahmed said. (Saturday PUNCH)

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