The growing cases of armed attacks on banks in Southwest Nigeria have become a source of concern to residents in the region.
Nigeria is battling with high level of insecurity. In the northwest and north central, the prevailing challenges are banditry and kidnapping, while the Boko Haram and ISWAP have continued to unleash terror in the northeast.
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In the southwest, apart from pockets of bandit attacks and kidnapping, armed attack on banks is the new face of terror.
In 2018, a new generation bank in Offa, Kwara state few kilometers into Nigeria’s southwest, was attacked by armed robbers, an attack which left 17 persons dead and remains one of the deadliest cases of daytime bank armed robbery in recent times.
As if picking from their playbook, In the last one year alone, many commercial banks have been raided in Ondo, Osun, Ekiti, and Oyo states.
Between November 2020 and July 2021, no fewer than six bank raids have been successfully carried out in the region.
Both innocent members of the public and policemen have been victims of these deadly onslaught by daring men of the underworld which has left no fewer than fifteen persons dead.
In most cases, banks in remote communities are always the targets, The rising cases of the attack raises questions on the intelligence gathering mechanism of various security agencies.
For Abu Adams, a security analyst, the authorities need to be more holistic in tackling criminal activities.
Another recommendation is the need to do regular background checks on security men attached to financial institutions.
Even when arrests are recorded, prosecuting the suspects drags on for years. For instance, 3 years after the Offa robbery, the trial of the suspects is still ongoing before a Kwara state High Court even as the relatives of the victims and survivors yearn for justice.
Among those killed at the Offa robbery were policemen guarding the bank. Reports have it that some police officers are given only a handful of ammunition which is grossly inadequate for the responsibilities given to them.
This highlights the need to properly equip the Nigerian police force with modern-day equipment to enable them counter attacks, while increasing security measures in and around banking institutions.
(Editor-Abaje Usekwe)
