Kogi State Governor Usman Ododo on Tuesday said he will neither negotiate with nor tolerate “bandits” in his State, echoing directives he attributed to President Bola Tinubu.
Speaking to State House Correspondents after a closed-door meeting with President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Ododo, joined by Senator Smart Adeyemi credited the Federal Government’s security strategy for recent gains and said his approach aligns with Tinubu’s stance against bargaining with criminals.
“He told me when I assumed office, ‘Look, don’t negotiate with criminals. Negotiating with criminals indirectly empowers them against you,’ and that is what we are doing. Today in Kogi State, we are safe. I don’t play with them. I don’t negotiate with them,” the Governor said.
Ododo described insecurity as “an inherited problem” and praised President Tinubu for confronting it since taking office.
He said his visit to the Villa was to thank the president for federal support that, he said, helped secure the successful rescue of students and other recent security successes in Kogi.
On questions about infrastructure, Governor Ododo declined to list projects, instead inviting journalists to visit the state and see progress firsthand.
“If you want to know what we are doing in Kogi State, please come to Kogi State. We are ready to receive you and provide logistic support,” he said, adding that the State and presidential media teams share close ties.
NewsQuest reports that insecurity especially banditry in Kogi State has escalated sharply since mid-2025, with armed groups expanding operations from the north-west into the state’s forested corridors and border communities, carrying out kidnappings, killings, and attacks on churches and security checkpoints.
The State has however witnessed in recent times, repeated multi-agency offensives combining the Nigerian Army (12 Brigade), police, DSS, Navy, Air Force, NSA-linked units, and local vigilantes/hunters.
Our correspondent gathered that Governor Ododo has taken a tougher, more visible line against insecurity in the State, combining curbs on public gatherings, tighter profiling of mining sites, and stronger support for security agencies, an approach seen to focus on denying criminals room to operate, especially in vulnerable areas such forests, schools, and worship centres.
