Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Oyo State government is planning to have a crucial meeting with area boys, cult groups and others in the state as part of efforts to put an end to incessant disruption of public peace.
The Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Wasiu Olatunbosun, said the meeting will involve the groups and security operatives in the state.
Speaking on Thursday after a closed-door meeting with representatives of the militant groups, including Agbekoya, Odua People’s Congress, Vigilante Group of Nigeria, among others in Ibadan, the Commissioner said the move is to foster peace in the state.
According to him, the state government, in collaboration with all the militant groups, is determined to proffer peaceful solutions to the unrest between area boys and cult groups, saying the time to end the bloodshed in the state is now.
Mr Olatunbosun said the meeting aims to solve the problem from the root, disclosing that the state government will work closely with security agencies and leaders of the militant groups, to meet with the cult sects and mediate between warring parties in the state.
“The State Executive Council is aware of the activities of cultists and cult groups in the State. We hope to hold a meeting with them.
“Oyo State Government, under the leadership of Governor Seyi Makinde, is determined to put a stop to this clash among cult groups and area boys. To this end, we in collaboration with all the militant groups in the state are taking the message of peace to the den of these cultists,” he said.
“We will try to convince them to be disarmed and return to their homes peacefully. Afterwards, there will be a clampdown on activities of area boys and cult groups who fail to cooperate with us,” he said.
Mr Olatunbosun, who underlined that through the help of some of the militant groups, the state government will contact members of each cult group, also assured that things will change, because the governor has shown sincerity in ending the fights among the warring groups.
He, therefore, admonished the area boys and rival cult groups to sheath their swords and pursue peace, stressing that after the peace talks, there will be a clampdown on cultists and cult activities in the state, appealing to parents and guardians to caution their children and wards against cultism.
