The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland Gani Adams yesterday said he warned South West governors about the rising security concerns in the region years ago.

Speaking on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, he stressed that a spate of killings, abductions and banditry in the zone is unprecedented in the history of Yorubaland.

Tracing the roots of the crisis, Adams noted that his concerns predate his installation as Aare Ona Kakanfo in 2018, saying he had already begun raising alarm about movements of armed elements into parts of Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa.

He said intelligence reports at the time indicated a grow ing presence of non-state actors with sophisticated weapons, but these warnings were dismissed, even by those responsible for internal security, thereby allowing the situation to fester into a fullblown crisis.

He said: “If you want to blame anybody on the issue of insecurity in the South West, don’t blame me, because I have done everything within my power to raise awareness and to push for proactive measures before things got out of hand.

“Even before I became the Aare Ona Kakanfo in 2018, I had intelligence reports about the infiltration of armed groups into the Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa areas, and I made it clear to those who needed to listen.

“Unfortunately, those warnings were not taken seriously, and today we are seeing the consequences of that neglect. “This is not something that just started; it is something that has been building over time due to a lack of decisive action.”