The serene community of Ilawo, a town in Egbaland of Ogun State came alive with pomp and pageantry as Oba Prof. Olusegun MacGregor kick start the activities marking his 2nd year anniversary as Olu of Ilawo Egba, Ogun State.
This historic occasion event which began with a 7.5klm healthy walk around the town saw the celebrant clad in sport attire that epitomized his love for sports humbly led the mammoth crowd in the walk.
The health walk however, took the Ogun Monarch, MacGregor to the Arewa Community in the Ago – Ika axis of the metropolis, who all enthusiastically trooped out to welcome the traditional ruler, whose domain extended to their community.
Addressing members of the Arewa community, MacGregor, a Professor of Bio-pharmaceutics and current President of the Toronto Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology (TIPT), Canada, assured the northerners of supports “at whatever form” throughout the periods of their stay in his domain.
The monarch, whose jurisdictional superintendence covers over 50 villages in both Abeokuta North and Odeda Local Governments areas, also commended members of the Arewa Community for their peacefu co-existence with their neighbours for years immemorial in Egbaland.
MacGregor however, charged them not to consider themselves as alien, but strive towards being good ambassadors of their respective states even while doing genuine business in Egbaland.
Head of the Arewa Community in presence, Alhaji Mohammad Kamilu appreciated the monarch for his efforts at uniting all residents under his kingdom, notwithstanding their affiliated tribes.
Kamilu, who was the head of the poultry section, also assured Oba McGregor of the unalloyed supports of the northerners doing genuinely businesses in Ilawo Community, stressing that his routine daily health walk has always being a source of inspiration to them.
Speaking in an interview with newsmen after the 7. 5klm health walk, Oba McGregor appealed to the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led Federal Government to consider traditional rulers as critical stakeholders in their efforts at creating the state police towards overcoming the challenges of insecurity in Nigeria.
The Ogun monarch emphatically stated that crime prevention in any community, nay country, cannot be effectively achieved without liaison with the traditional institutions which formed that basis for the grassroot governance.
“It is very critical that the federal government considers the impact of the traditional institutions because if you look at the most developed countries of the world, we have the state police. Like we have the Metropolitan Police in the United Kingdom (UK) and the Provincial Police in Canada. These are in addition to the federal forces.
“In actual sense, it is the state Police that has the ability to effectively deliver on crime prevention.
“I dare say that crime prevention cannot be effectively achieved without liaison with the traditional institutions in Nigeria. As the traditional institutions, e know the people that knowledge gives us the native intelligence to know the criminal elements within our society.
“If you give us the power today, we will route out all the criminals in our society and hand them over to the police.
With particular reference to the federal government’s renewed efforts at creating the State Police, Oba MacGregor declared that state Police tends to give a sense of belonging; a sense of commitment and loyalty to the state and by extension, the people.
“Invariably, there will be healthy competitions among state security apparatus in Nigeria because if a state is doing well and its economy is doing well, investors will throop in there. It will encourage other states to follow likewise.
“There are lots of flaws in the current system of federal policing because it is almost at the revolving doors. The state police working with the traditional institutions will make them phenomenally effective. Insecurity will disappear”.
“All the hullabaloo about farmers-herdsmen’s conflicts are grassroot issues and can be solved if we sit at the traditional rulers roundtable meeting with the stakeholders, the state and the federal police and tangible solutions will be preferred for the entire country”.
