Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State on Tuesday in Ibadan said the application of intelligence-gathering would enhance the conventional method of fighting crime.
Makinde spoke while declaring open a three-day training for officers and men of the State Security Network Agency, known as “Amotekun Corps.”
The Governor, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Segun Ogunwuyi, said intelligence-gathering was the most potent tool of stopping criminal activities before they were committed.
He noted that it had become imperative to apply intelligence-gathering and analysis to the conventional method of fighting crime.
“Security intelligence-gathering is an act of collecting, standardising and analysing data. It is a great tool in crime prevention as it enables crimes to be nipped in the bud even before they are committed.
“It is important to apply intelligence-gathering to the conventional method of fighting crime. We can’t just go about with guns and cutlasses and say we are fighting crime,” Makinde said.
He said the training was packaged to sharpen the intelligence-gathering and investigative skills of the Amotekun Corps, and thereby enhance their abilities “to nip crime in the bud before it is committed.
“Also, we do not want to be reactive in most cases. We don’t want crime to take place before we take action. The training will make to know that it is cost-effective for them to prevent crime.
“Thus, the only way they can do that is to be able to detect the crime before it takes place,” the Governor said.
He commended the leadership and men of the Amotekun corps on their comportment and cooperation with conventional security agencies in securing lives and property in the state.
Makinde enjoined all the participants to maximise the opportunity of the workshop to enhance their operations and help make the state safer.
In his welcome address, the State Commandant of Amotekun corps, Col. Olayinka Olayanju (rtd), said the training was organised to enhance the capacity of the corps.
“This is for them to become more efficient in their operational engagement in the respective communities where they are serving.”
Olayanju added that the facilitators engaged for the training have first-hand experiences in local security intelligence-gathering across different African countries.
He said the Amotekun Corps’ approach to doing their jobs would at the end of the training be different.
“Preventing and solving crimes will become easier when the information collection method has become effective,” the commandant said.
Participants in the training were drawn from the state’s 33 local government areas.
