Leader of the Oodua People’s Congress Reformed (OPC R), Chief Dare Adesope, has urged the federal and state governments to equip and actively engage local security outfits in tackling the rising wave of insecurity in communities across Nigeria.

Adesope, who spoke during a media briefing in Lagos, stressed that the involvement of trusted local structures like community vigilantes, traditional rulers, and ethnic-based security groups could strengthen grassroots intelligence and complement formal security agencies.

“Local security outfits understand the terrain, the language, and the people. Their involvement is not only strategic but necessary,” he said.

He urged the government to create a legal framework that will support, monitor, and fund local security structures without politicizing their operations.

Adesope noted that insecurity is not only affecting lives but also crippling local economies, particularly in the South West. He warned that if urgent steps are not taken, trust in national protection could further decline.

The OPC boss condemned the recent attack by suspected bandits on a church in Eruku, Kwara State, describing the incident as a monumental tragedy. (The Nation)