The Agbekoya Solidarity Movement of Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to provide formal recognition, logistical support, and legal backing so the group can actively assist in combating banditry, Boko Haram insurgency, and other security threats across the country.
The appeal was contained in a communiqué issued at the group’s monthly general meeting held on Friday in Olorunda, Akanran, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the National President, Bankole Ahmed Olayiwola, said members of the Agbekoya Movement possess spiritual and ancestral knowledge passed down from their forebears during the historic Agbekoya uprising, as well as deep forest experience and valuable local intelligence for tracking and dislodging criminal elements operating in Nigeria’s woodland and bushland corridors.
Mr. Olayiwola expressed concern over the rising tide of violent incidents, especially across parts of northern Nigeria, where killings and abductions have surged. Citing verified figures from the Global Terrorism Index and the Nigeria Security Tracker, the communiqué noted that more than 9,000 Nigerians lost their lives to terrorist attacks, banditry, and communal clashes between 2023 and 2025, with Borno, Zamfara, Kaduna, Niger, Plateau and Benue among the worst affected. Thousands have been displaced and farmlands abandoned as a result.
“We understand the forests better than anyone else,” Mr. Olayiwola said. “Some of our operatives live and work there daily. But we cannot take decisive action without the Federal Government’s recognition and legal backing. We don’t want to be accused of illegal operations when all we seek is to defend our people.”
He added: “Once we have the government’s support, we are ready—physically, spiritually, and strategically—to drive out these criminals. With the right logistics and communication infrastructure, we can reduce these killings drastically.”
The Group blamed part of the escalation in insecurity on porous borders and the infiltration of foreign mercenaries. Mr. Olayiwola argued that engaging professional hunters, forest guards and local vigilante networks as first responders would bolster national security and provide actionable intelligence ahead of military intervention.
“Most of these attackers enter through bush routes. If our men are empowered to monitor these areas, they can serve as the first line of defence. We are brave, disciplined and ready for the task—what we need is formal support from the government,” he said.
Reacting to recent international commentary — including claims that Christians are being killed in Nigeria more than anywhere else — Mr. Olayiwola described such remarks as “misleading and unhelpful.”
“The violence in Nigeria affects both Christians and Muslims alike. The problem is insecurity, not religion,” he said. “What we need from international partners is intelligence-sharing and logistics support, not divisive statements that risk worsening internal unity.”
The Agbekoya Solidarity Movement reaffirmed its support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive to overhaul the nation’s security architecture and called for formal integration of traditional security institutions, local hunters and forest guards into the national defence strategy.
“With Federal Government backing, we are ready to deploy all our assets—physical, spiritual and otherwise—to restore peace and order to every corner of Nigeria,” the statement concluded.
