The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has warned that armed groups have infiltrated several communities in the South-West with plans to launch coordinated attacks.
Adams issued the warning during an interview with Central TV at his Lagos residence, where he said intelligence at his disposal suggests a growing and immediate danger.
“We are at a point where the security situation in this country has become deeply troubling. Recent incidents across numerous states show clearly that Nigeria is facing a serious security threat.
“Credible information available to us indicates that terrorists have already infiltrated many communities in Yorubaland,” he said.
He added that developments in neighbouring Kogi and Kwara states, two regions he described as “buffer zones” to the South-West, suggest that armed groups are testing tactics ahead of broader assaults.
“What they are doing in Kogi and Kwara is simply to test the terrain before launching major attacks. The intelligence we have shows that they are targeting Oyo, Ekiti, Ondo and even Lagos State,” he alleged.
When asked to identify the groups involved, Adams linked the threats to various armed factions operating in northern Nigeria, noting that his assertions were based on information obtained from undisclosed sources.
“These are the same groups responsible for daily attacks in different parts of the country. Sometimes they are labelled as bandits, sometimes as violent herdsmen.
“But beyond that, we know that international terrorist organisations such as ISIS, ISWAP and Boko Haram also operate in Nigeria. There are also splinter groups that broke away from them,” he said.
He claimed that foreign elements were involved in coordinating some of the alleged activities.
“I can say authoritatively that some foreigners are coordinating this. It is not limited to Nigerians alone,” he asserted.
Adams said the motivations behind the violence vary from group to group, driven by political, economic and ethnic objectives.
