Governor Seyi Makinde has signed an executive order regulating the activities of vigilante groups and other local security organisations across Oyo State amid growing security concerns in the state.
The Executive Order No. 001 of 2026 was signed during a press briefing in Ibadan, according to Channels Television. The regulation is aimed at strengthening coordination among local security groups, preventing abuse and curbing ethnic tensions linked to unregulated operations.
Makinde said the government would no longer tolerate the formation of illegal security outfits operating outside official oversight.
“We do not want people forming groups, associations, in the name of security, and then on that basis they start ethnic profiling and ethnic confrontation,” the governor said.
He warned residents against targeting innocent people based on ethnicity while urging citizens to report criminal activities to security agencies.
The governor also addressed the recent abduction of teachers and students from Yawota and Ahoro-Esinele High School in Oriire Local Government Area, assuring residents that security agencies were intensifying rescue efforts.
Makinde thanked residents for remaining calm and cooperating with authorities during the ongoing security operations.
The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Abiodun Aikomo, said the executive order became necessary following the rise of community-based security groups across the state.
According to him, any group involved in security activities with more than five members must now formally notify the Office of the Governor through the Special Adviser on Security.
Existing groups have been given 72 hours to comply with the directive or face prosecution under the law.
Aikomo said the regulation would enable the state government and security agencies to identify individuals carrying weapons or operating security outfits in communities across Oyo State.
The enforcement of the order will be handled by the Office of the Special Adviser on Security, the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
The governor maintained that the regulation formed part of his administration’s efforts to safeguard lives and property amid worsening insecurity in parts of the country.
