…He has rights to order them out — Adams
The Aare-Ona-Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has backed Governor Akeredolu that he has the right under the country’s constitution to give quit notice to illegal residents in the state’s forest reserves.
The Yoruba Generalissimo said it is the duty of the governor, as the chief security officer of the state, to protect lives and property of residents in the state.
In a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Aderemi, Aare Adams said the Presidency had failed to address the security situation across the country.
His words: “Garba Shehu and the Presidency apparently do not know the meaning of reserved forests. It’s not accessible except to authorised personnel/loggers.
“Apart from the place being a place for valued cash trees, it is also meant as a haven of safety for protected animals against poachers.
“The herdsmen living in the forests are not only unauthorised, they would likely cut down trees to make fires and kill animals for food.
“A reserve forest is not a place of residence for anyone, not even Ondo indigenes or farmers.
“It is most unfortunate that such a statement is coming directly from the Presidency, who according to the constitution, has the duty to protect the lives and property of citizens in the country now looking for ways to foil the good plans and intentions of the state government to get rid of bad elements masquerading as herders and pastoralists in the state.
“So, the governor’s decision is in the right direction and it is in the interest of the state.
“I am now using this opportunity to call on all Yoruba sons and daughters to support all the governors in the South-West in their fight against insurgency across the region.”
