By Ayomide Otitoju
Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun has announced the arrest of four additional suspects in connection with the abduction of students of the state-owned ICT Polytechnic, Saapade, who were rescued by security agencies on Thursday.
Abiodun made the disclosure while commissioning a 3.3-kilometre road in the Mowe area of Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of the state.
The governor assured residents and investors of adequate protection for lives and property, warning criminals to stay away from Ogun State.
He said the state would no longer provide a safe haven for criminals, describing the rescue of the students and the arrests as a major victory in the fight against insecurity.
Two members of the kidnapping gang had earlier been arrested on Thursday during the operation that led to the rescue of the seven students.
Abiodun commended the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), National Association of Ogun State Students (NAOSS) and other student organisations for their patience and support while the students were in captivity.
He attributed the successful rescue to the coordinated efforts of the Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ogun State Security Network Agency, also known as Amotekun Corps, as well as local hunters and vigilantes.
The governor also acknowledged the support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Inspector-General of Police and the Director-General of the DSS.
He said all seven students were rescued alive and disclosed that four more suspects had been arrested, while other members of the gang remained at large.
Abiodun reiterated his administration’s zero-tolerance policy towards crime, stressing that Ogun State, as an industrial hub and gateway to Nigeria, would not allow criminals to operate freely.
“Those who come here to test our resolve will be tracked down, smoked out, arrested, and made to face the full weight of the law,” he said.
On infrastructure development, Abiodun said 42 roads had been constructed or reconstructed across Ogun Central Senatorial District since 2019, including 12 projects in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area.
He listed completed projects in the local government to include the Abeokuta-Sagamu Interchange Road, Panseke-Adigbe Road, Journalists’ Estate Road in Arepo, Siun-Owode Road Phase I, Mowe-Ofada Road, Iyana-Oloke Junction-MAPOLY Road, Adesan Road, Kuforiji-Olubi Road, Adigbe-Laderin-Train Station Road, Sagamu-Ofada-Papalanto Road and Magboro-Makogi Road.
The governor said additional roads in Obafemi Owode, including a road linking Magboro, would soon be completed and commissioned.
Abiodun said the local government, which serves as a border area and an important food-producing zone where Ofada rice is cultivated and processed, required continued investment in infrastructure to support its growing population and economic activities.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Ade Akinsanya, described Adesan Road as an important economic corridor that would improve connectivity between neighbouring communities and the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, boost commerce and ease transportation.
