Kunle Adelabu
-Announces availability of CBN loan facilities for 100 lkorodu youths.
His Royal Majesty, Oba Kabiru Shotobi, the Ayangbure of Ikorodu, has faulted many steps taken so far in tackling youth restiveness and cultism menace in the society, especially in Ikorodu Division, stating that those steps lack the needed impetus to work.
The royal father called for a meaningful job creation and empowerment for the youths to effectively stop them from cultism and other criminal acts.
Ob Shotobi made this statements during the visit by members of the Ikorodu Division Youth Initiative Movement (IDYIM) and members of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Ikorodu branch, to his palace on the securitysituation in lkorodu division on Thursday, February 6, 2020.
Also at the visit, Oba Shotobi announced loan facility for 100 youths in Ikorodu courtesy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and enjoined interested individuals with good business proposal to visit his palace for forms.
The gang war across the division has led to the killing of about 50 people, mostly youths, between last year and this year alone. The killings were as a result of supremacy battles among various cult groups, especially Airlord (Eiye), Axe (Ake) and KKK confraternities.
The last incidents of the cult killings were the gruesome murder of a suspected Eiye member on Borokinni Street at Gbasemo, Aga in Ikorodu and another cult suspect at Aga junction during the week.
Addressing his visitors on the current security challenges facing Ikorodu division presently, Oba Shotobi stated that:
“The solution to the youth restiveness is to put in place good empowerment scheme that will completely take them off the street. With this, I think that they won’t go back to crimes because that would engage them positively”, Oba Shotobi stated.
The monarch recounted efforts made two years ago in making suspected cultists in Ikorodu to denounced their membership of the various cult groups and embrace peace at an event attended by the former Commissioner for Police in state while also frowning at the failure to empower those that renounced their membership of the cult groups at the event, stating that that was part of what were agreed upon.
“I cannot point to any youth in Ikorodu that has been empowered with all these empowerment and wealth creation that we are hearing everywhere. At least, there is none that has been brought to the attention of the palace”, royal father stated.
“We have the opportunity now to empower at least 100 people from Ikorodu. The Central Bank of Nigeria is ready to empower some people with money between N2million to N10million”, Kabiyesi revealed.
“But those interested must meet the laid down demands by picking up forms at the palace and return it on or before Tuesday (next week). They must also have good business proposal and I also think that another requirement is academic certificates”, he added.
“The form is available for both indigenes and residents in Ikorodu. I want people that can put the money into good use and pay back the loan as at when due so that we can continue to benefit from the opportunity”.
Oba Shotobi also announced that the Federal Government has approved the Community Policing system and that the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State has started recruiting in this regard.
He added that the recruitment for the community policing would also provide another opportunity for the youths in Ikorodu to be meaningfully engaged.
“The latest information that I have for you is the acceptance of Community Policing by the Federal Government. They have accepted and sent the Commissioner of Police in the State to start recruiting and those that they are going to recruit must be from each division of the State”, the royal father revealed.
“The Commissioner of Police told us last Wednesday (February 6) that they have started recruiting personnel. We were told that those that would be recruited must be indigenes of a particular division.
“Right now, those that will be recruited, for instance in Ikorodu division, must be from either Ikorodu, Imota, Ijede, Igbogbo and others parts of Ikorodu division. You must get a letter of indigeneship”.
However, messages sent to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Lagos Police Command, via WhatsApp and SMS to confirm the recruitment exercise for the Community Policing were not responded to as at the time of publishing this story.
