Banditry: Kogi needs urgent attention

Bandit attacks in Kogi State had been largely underreported until the shocking ambush of five buses and the kidnapping of more than 20 persons on November 10, 2025, along the Ayere-Kabba highway in Ijumu Local Government Area. Since that major incident, several other attacks have been carried out by criminals on the same route, causing severe tension, disrupting economic activities, and making road transportation on the route a high-risk decision.  Motorists who used to constantly ply the South West route now avoid the four local government areas of Kabba/Bunu, Ijumu, Yagba West and Yagba East which have witnessed increased bandit attacks in recent months. In a recent interview with Weekend Trust, Elder Aremu Ajiboye in Egbe of Kogi-West Senatorial District explained the situation thus: “The hoodlums [bandits] are visiting our communities and roads with terror, seizing our lands, demeaning our much-cherished traditional institution and leaders, with no respect for the sanctity of our women and elders. We now live in fear. In the past four months, in seemingly coordinated attacks, the invading bandits have sacked several villages, kidnapping the influential, poor, rich, and innocent, with some killed in the process, including traditional rulers, clergymen, police, and other security operatives.” Also, in the Kogi East Senatorial District, bandit attacks have grown increasingly devastating. Motorists are often intercepted, with passengers forced into the forest and held as kidnap victims. The region has become a hub for bandits, who extort large sums of money from their captives daily. The route favoured by travellers heading to the South East has now turned into a danger zone. Residents live under constant fear of ambushes, both on highways and bush paths. Omala Local Government Area, especially the Ajokpachi Odo community, has been the worst affected: bandits have burnt down more than 10 communities, killed about 30 people, and displaced villagers from their ancestral homes, occupying the area until recent weeks when security forces intervened. Even so, fewer than 40 per cent of displaced villagers have returned, as many remain gripped by fear of renewed attacks. These acts of banditry and terror are linked to mining activities in the state. Kogi State is blessed with abundant deposits of quality coal, crude oil, nickel, limestone, and lithium. A lot of mining activities are taking place at various locations, including the Aredu Forest, which has witnessed an influx of suspected criminals from Zamfara, Kaduna, and Katsina states. Bandits have found Kogi State to be a soft target primarily because the state has limited security capacity, as available security agencies often face shortages of personnel, inadequate equipment, and insufficient funding. Patrols are concentrated around urban centres like Lokoja, leaving rural communities vulnerable. Bandits exploit these gaps, striking villages, highways, and farmlands with little resistance. Kogi’s vast forested areas, riverine terrain, and numerous rural communities provide hideouts and escape routes for bandits. The state’s central location also makes it a transit corridor for criminals moving between northern and southern regions. Kogi State shares borders with as many as 10 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). They include Benue, Niger, Kwara, and Nasarawa from the North. Others include Enugu, Anambra, Ogun, Ekiti, Edo and Delta States. The states to the North are all plagued by terrorists and bandits. Niger, Kwara, Benue, and Nasarawa States have their running battles with terrorists. Nasarawa State, especially, has been identified as the base of terror groups that snake into Kogi State, carry out destruction and return to their base. Bandits from Kebbi State, who now trouble Niger and Kwara States, are believed to be responsible for the constant attacks in Kogi West Senatorial District. On another front, Kogi State is a victim of the perennial battle between the Agatu people of Benue State and the Fulani, as the Kogi communities that share borders with Agatu have now become the battleground for rival militants. Over the years, there has been no serious security arrangement in Kogi State to deal with the dangerous and growing trends of banditry and terrorism. We call on the military to set up separate military operations in Kogi East, Kogi West and Kogi Central Senatorial Districts, which are prone to attacks. Security operatives must work together and with communities to obtain intelligence information from the people. Through intelligence, it is possible to identify individuals or group of persons in communities who collaborate with criminals.  Secondly, there must be rapid corridor patrols and checkpoints. It has become important to concentrate mixed patrols (police, military, NSCDC) on the Agatu-Omala area in Kogi East, the Obajana–Kabba–Ayere and Kabba–Ijumu stretches, and the Yagba West feeder roads in Kogi West. The military can also stagger checkpoint times and use mobile units to avoid predictability. Publicly visible patrols should be carried out in the long stretch of Kogi East. The operations should be carried out during the day and at night. Also, security operatives must continue to engage in offensive raids on known bandit camps.  The camps used by bandits must be identified and destroyed. Every step must be taken to stamp out the activities of bandits in Kogi State. Kogi State Government, security operatives in the state, and those of the other 10 neighbouring states must jointly work to free the state from the grip of bandits. Kogi is a principal gateway which should not be left at the mercy of criminals.

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