A middle-aged woman has staged a lone protest in Akure, the Ondo State capital, demanding to know the whereabouts of her husband, identified as Victor Temitope Akinsipe.
In a video that surfaced online, shared by Oluwaseun Ogunmola, also known as OB Sugar, the woman, who appeared to be pregnant, was seen crying and carrying a placard at the Igbatoro Road Roundabout, which leads to both the Amotekun Corps Headquarters and the Governor’s Office.
The woman begged for mercy and appealed to authorities to help locate her husband, whom she said had been missing for about a week.
According to her, Akinsipe left home after allegedly receiving a call from Amotekun Corps, inviting him and others to a “peaceful meeting” at the Senior Staff Club, Akure.
She said the meeting was related to agitations among some officers demanding formal appointment letters from the state government.
“My husband told me the Commandant called them for a meeting to settle the issue of appointment letters. He left home for the meeting and since then, I have not seen or heard from him,” she said tearfully in the viral video.
Efforts to get the reaction of the Amotekun Corps were not successful as at the time of this report.
Meanwhile, the Ondo State Security Network agency, codenamed Amotekun Corps, on Monday, disclosed that three of its operatives have been suspended for breaching the Corps’ oath of allegiance and secrecy.
The suspended officers have also been declared wanted by the Corps for proper investigations.
Addressing journalists at the Corps’ headquarters during the parade of suspected criminals in Akure, the state capital, the state commandant of the Corps, Akogun Adetunji Adeleye, named the suspended officers as Abu Taiwo, Akinsipe Victor, and Ekujumi Julius.
Adeleye hinted that the suspended officers not only sought to undermine and disparage the management of the Corps but also aimed to distract the Corps from its core mandate of providing security to lives and property.
According to him, “As we stand today, the three of them have been reprimanded. They have also been declared wanted, and due diligence is being exercised in handling such matters in a security environment where oaths of allegiance and secrecy to the state cannot be disregarded. We refuse to be dragged into controversies surrounding each of them.”
While noting that every organisation has its own rules, with Amotekun being no exception, Adeleye disclosed that “the law establishing the Corps specifically states that identity cards and warrant cards should be issued only to operatives who are full staff members of the government agency.”
He added, “The fact remains that they are acting in isolation, and the Ondo State Security Network Agency, Amotekun Corps, remains united, as you can see from the entire management staff, ensuring we are not distracted. They are acting independently.
“The three have been suspended from the Corps, and we are looking for them to come forward and answer questions as a way of giving them due process under criminal justice. If they are innocent, everyone will see. But the Corps as an entity will not be dragged into social media controversies involving individuals acting in isolation, especially now that we are certain and have proof of their sponsorship.”
