By STEPHEN ADELEYE

Kogi government says it has arrested 16 alleged kidnappers and eight informants in a clean-up operation in Bunu Forest in Kogi West Local Government.

The State Security Adviser, Commander Jerry Omodara (rtd), disclosed this while parading the suspects to newsmen on Tuesday in Odo-Ape in Kabba-Bunu Local Government.

Omodara noted that the operation, which lasted for two weeks, was part of the government?s efforts to tackle insecurity in the state.

He said the operation was carried out in collaboration with Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) and other security agencies.

According to Omodara, the suspects include natives who have been aiding the activities of bandits by supplying them with logistics such as food, drinks, water, and others.

?It is not only the kidnappers group in the forest that have been arrested, but also the natives that are collaborating with them.

?They serve as their logistics suppliers to the bandits and kidnappers in the bush.

?Our investigations, after the death of the kidnapped retired Major Joe Ajayi, we discovered that some natives were involved.

?The arrested suspects are helping the security agencies to get to the root causes of the rampant kidnapping in the area.

?You can see the harvest of arrests via what the state government is doing. These are the people causing havoc in our forests.

?We are not going to allow it, we will be after them because Kogi is not any other state that criminals, bandits and kidnappers will want to ride on and occupy,? he said.

The security adviser assured that the government would not take the issue of security lightly and would continue to work with security agencies to bring perpetrators to book.

Omodara emphasized the government?s commitment to ensuring peace and security in Kogi.

He stressed that Gov. Ahmed Ododo?s efforts to tackle insecurity in the state had yielded positive results, with the arrest of many criminal elements across the state.

He added: ?the Kogi government has vowed to continue working with security agencies to clear bandits and kidnappers from the state?s forests and bring perpetrators to book.?

He warned politicians, traditional rulers, and youths who collaborate with kidnappers to desist from such activities because the state government would take action against such persons.

Omodara noted that the government had also formed a defence system to prevent the influx of criminals from neighboring states.

Also speaking, Mr Jeremiah Danjuma, Deputy Commandant of the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) in Kogi West, attributed the success in combating kidnapping and banditry to the collaborative efforts of the state and Federal Government.

?Through the joint efforts, we formed the Civilian JTF, which has recorded significant achievements.

?In our cleanup operation last night at Bunu forests, we apprehended 16 (alleged) bandits and kidnappers, including some from Zamfara.

?Some of the suspects were immediately handed over to the DSS for further investigation,? Danjuma said.

The traditional ruler of Aiyegunle-Igun Bunu Community, Oba Sunday Omodamori, expressed sadness over a recent protest that was reportedly staged by some disgruntled elements.

The traditional ruler commended the government and security agencies for their efforts in tackling insecurity in the area.

He urged the communities in the area to look inward and address the issue of collaborators among their people.

On his part, Ojo Olayinka, the Youth Leader of Aiyegunle-Igun community, clarified that the recent protest wasn?t organised by their community, but rather by some groups within Bunu who took advantage of the market day crowd.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a retired Major, Joe Ajayi, who was kidnapped on May 21, at his residence in Odo-Ape, died on June 9, in captivity in spite of his family paying N10 million ransom. (NAN)

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