Kwara PDP Alleges State Government’s Complicity in Banditry, Demands Federal Probe
The Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday raised alarm over what it described as “disturbing and weighty allegations” linking the Kwara State Government to criminal banditry, following the confession of suspected bandits arrested by the Nigerian Army in Edo State.
Speaking at a press conference held at the PDP Secretariat along Pipeline Road, Ilorin, the party’s State Chairman, Hon. Isa Bawa Adamu, said the opposition was “compelled to address the people of Kwara State, Nigerians at large, and the international community” due to the gravity of the allegations and their implications for national security.
“We are deeply disturbed by the widely circulated video and reports of arrested criminal bandits apprehended by men of the Nigerian Army in Auchi, Edo State,” Adamu said. “In that video, the suspects categorically alleged that officials of the Kwara State Government supplied them with AK-47 rifles and a government-crested operational vehicle for their criminal activities.”
According to the PDP chairman, the video shows the suspects, with their hands tied, being interrogated by security operatives about the source of their weapons and logistics. He quoted one of the suspects as saying: “We have been here for quite a while. We are using the vehicle for patrol. Wallahi, na the truth I dey tell you. The Ilorin government gave us this motor and the weapons.”
The suspect allegedly added: “We are not the ones that collected the rifles; it was our oga that collected them. I was with them. We go on patrol many times, including with Oga Victor. All of them are involved. The weapons are theirs.”
Adamu said the confessions raised serious concerns and placed “an enormous burden of explanation” on Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, whom he described as “not only the Chief Executive of the state but constitutionally the Chief Security Officer of Kwara State.”
“This is a direct allegation of state-sponsored criminality that must not be swept under the carpet,” he said.
The PDP chairman stressed that the suspects did not claim to have stolen the weapons or purchased them from the black market. “They spoke clearly and repeatedly that the weapons came from officials of the Ilorin government and that the vehicle used was a government patrol van procured by the Abdulrazaq-led administration and distributed to local government councils,” he said, asking, “Who has been providing weapons for those terrorising communities and killing innocent people of Kwara?”
Linking the allegations to the worsening security situation in the state, Adamu said the timing was “most unfortunate and saddening,” noting that communities across Kwara North and South had suffered repeated attacks.
He cited a report by the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), which he said revealed that “between January and November 2025, over 507 persons were killed and at least 377 abducted across major flashpoints in Kwara.”
“The worst-hit local government areas include Ifelodun, Patigi, Edu, Ekiti, Isin and Irepodun,” he added, referencing incidents such as the killing of vigilantes in Patigi, kidnappings in Eruku, Babanla, Isapa and Agbeku communities.
Adamu also recalled the September 28 attack on Oke-Ode community, describing it as a “massacre” in which more than 15 people were killed. He alleged that “a government agent described as a military man” had disarmed local hunters and vigilantes a day before the attack.
“Gentlemen of the press, the same name mentioned in that Oke-Ode incident — ‘Oga Victor’ — is the same name mentioned by the criminal suspects in the Edo confession video,” he said. “This coincidence is too grave to be ignored.”
The PDP chairman demanded public explanations from Governor Abdulrazaq, asking: “Who is ‘Oga Victor’? What official role does he play for the Kwara State Government? Why were AK-47 rifles allegedly released to non-state actors, and how did a government-customised patrol vehicle assigned to Ifelodun Local Government end up in the hands of bandits in Edo State?”
Calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene, Adamu said, “The President should be deeply concerned that a serving governor and Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum is being mentioned in allegations of banditry sponsorship at a time when the country is under severe security threats.”
He added that “in saner climes, a leader genuinely committed to the safety of his people would consider allegations of this magnitude grave enough to warrant stepping aside to allow for a thorough investigation.”
The PDP called for a comprehensive federal investigation into the confessions of the arrested suspects and urged security agencies to retrieve and audit all patrol vehicles allocated to local government councils in the state.
“We insist that this process must be transparent, with full public disclosure, as part of efforts to restore public confidence,” Adamu said.
He also challenged the media to “begin asking critical questions from the leadership of our security agencies” and to carry out investigative reporting on the matter.
As of the time of filing this report, the Kwara State Government had yet to respond to the allegations.
The press conference was attended by party stakeholders, civil society organisations, community representatives and members of the media.
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