Following the passage of Amotekun bill by Oyo state Assembly, the Oyo State Governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde will tomorrow sign the bill to back its establishment into law.
WITHIN NIGERIA recalls that the bill was passed with fanfare by the House of Assembly last Tuesday, as lawmakers and members of staff wore fabrics with leopard design to the plenary. It was the sole discussion for the day. The bill passed third reading and was passed by a unanimous decision.
It was gathered yesterday that the Office of the Governor of Oyo State has started making preparations for the ceremonial signing of Amotekun bill into law by Governor Makinde tomorrow.
The governor has played a pivotal role in the establishment of the regional security outfit due to the central location and importance of Oyo State to the Southwest.
For instance, the security summit, which gave birth to the idea of Amotekun, was held in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. The outfit was jointly launched on the premises of Makinde’s office on January 9 before the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami (SAN), declared the regional security outfit illegal.
Operation Amotekun was originally conceived as a regional security outfit by the governors of Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and Lagos states.
The governors agreed to give it a legal backing by the legislature of each state to overcome its illegality in the face of the Nigerian constitution.
The state assemblies and attorneys general of the six states worked together to generate the law backing the outfit. Although it was created on state-by-state basis, the outfit will still operate as a regional organisation, wearing the same uniform, using the same operational guidelines, having joint training for personnel and working together across borders to prevent crimes or track down criminals.
A source close to the state government told newsmen yesterday that Governor Makinde was preparing to sign the bill into law on Tuesday.