OYO GOVT WARNS AGAINST MISUSE OF NGOS, CROWDFUNDING FOR CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES
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By; Sunmola Ganiyat
The Oyo State Government has warned against the exploitation of non-governmental organisations, crowdfunding platforms and humanitarian funding channels for criminal activities and terrorism financing.
The Acting Governor of the state, Bayo Lawal, gave the warning on Tuesday while reaffirming the administration’s commitment to protecting lives and property through stronger collaboration with security agencies and other stakeholders.
Lawal, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Musibau Babatunde, spoke at a capacity-building workshop focused on awareness, intelligence gathering and institutional responses to emerging threats linked to illicit financial flows.
The workshop was held at the Western Hall, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.
According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Media, Sulaimon Olarenwaju, the acting governor said the state had intensified collaboration with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to prevent the abuse of humanitarian funding platforms and other financial channels.
He said the evolving security situation in the South-West, particularly recent cases of kidnapping, required stakeholders to strengthen their response to emerging and unconventional threats.
Lawal noted that criminal networks were increasingly adopting sophisticated methods to raise and transfer funds through crowdfunding platforms, NGOs, humanitarian interventions and informal financial systems.
He stressed that while humanitarian assistance remained important to vulnerable communities, stronger regulatory frameworks, proper documentation and effective monitoring were necessary to prevent such platforms from being hijacked by criminal groups.
The acting governor also emphasised the importance of strengthening financial intelligence and improving coordination among government agencies to disrupt criminal networks and suspicious financial activities.
He urged participants from various Ministries, Departments and Agencies to improve their understanding of terrorism-financing trends and develop proactive measures for early detection and prevention.
Lawal further called for the establishment of dedicated desks within MDAs to facilitate intelligence sharing, monitor suspicious financial transactions and ensure prompt responses to emerging security challenges.
The workshop brought together experts and stakeholders to exchange knowledge and best practices on combating terrorism financing, strengthening institutional capacity and protecting legitimate humanitarian activities from abuse.
Among those present were the Commissioner for Energy, Prof. Dahud Shangodoyin; Commissioner for Investment, Industry, Trade and Cooperatives, Prof. Solihu Adelabu; Commissioner for Works and Transport, Arch. Abdulmojeed Mogbonjubola; permanent secretaries, directors and other senior government officials.
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