In their determination to rid Oyo and Ogun States of kidnappers and other bandits, the governments of the two states are set to deploy drones to cover the roads linking them.
Towards this end, 30 patrol teams have already been formed between Oyo and Ogun states to tackle issues of kidnapping along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
The governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, who disclosed this said that the drones would aid security agents in monitoring activities in the area.
Abiodun said, “We are going beyond deployment of security teams, we are deploying drones to cover that road.
“These drones will allow us to see exactly what is happening there even before any occurrence.”
The deployment was meant to neutralize kidnappers who are abducting people on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, particularly on the Ogun State section of the busiest highway in the country.
Abiodun also said that the two states have cleared both sides of the expressway to improve visibility, the statutory duty of the Federal Ministry of Works.
He added, “We set up a joint security team with the Oyo State government because we found out that the majority of these incidences are right at the border between us and Oyo State, they take advantage of that area as a blind spot.
“As we speak today, I think, there are not less than thirty patrol teams on that corridor of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. These teams comprise soldiers, policemen, operatives from the DSS, men of the Civil Defence and vigilantes.
“The last thing we want is for people to travel with the fear of being kidnapped and nothing can be more terrible as we approach the Yuletide season.
“We have also gone ahead and cleared both sides of the road, because of that element of surprise that they introduce when they jump out of the bushes and then kidnap and run away.
“So, we have approached our contractors to clear 50 meters on each side so it makes it difficult for them to use the bushes to hide.”
