- Protesters plan to gather at Kwara Stadium on Thursday to oppose the use of the Yikpata NYSC camp for IDPs.
- Organizers question why an area deemed too dangerous for corps members is now considered safe for displaced women and children.
- The demonstration also highlights the recent Woro massacre in Kaiama, which left over 160 people dead.
Residents and youths of Kwara North Senatorial District, led by the Take-It-Back Movement, have finalized plans for a massive protest in Ilorin this Thursday.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the demonstration is a direct response to the Kwara State government’s alleged plan to convert the Yikpata National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp into a facility for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
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The Yikpata camp, located in Edu Local Government Area, was abandoned in September 2025 due to escalating banditry and relocated to the Kwara State Polytechnic campus.
Organizers argue that returning vulnerable displaced persons to a site previously labeled as unsafe for corps members is a dangerous contradiction.
The relocation of the NYSC camp has already been a source of significant friction in the state.
Last year, students at Kwara State Polytechnic protested the conversion of their campus into a temporary orientation camp, leading to clashes with police and a weeks-long closure of the institution.
Protesters now assert that if Ilorin could accommodate corps members, it possesses the necessary infrastructure to host IDPs from the Ora-Oga community without forcing them back into the volatile Edu/Patigi axis.
Comrade Musa Saidu Tsaragi, a key figure in the movement, stated that the region will no longer tolerate being treated as a dumping ground for the state’s unresolved security problems.
Beyond the camp controversy, the planned march is a cry for help regarding the worsening bloodbath in Kwara North.
The region is still reeling from the Woro massacre in Kaiama Local Government Area earlier this February.
Reports from that incident describe a horrific scene where gunmen killed over 160 residents, abducted dozens, and burned victims alive in their homes.
Survivors have criticized the government’s response as grossly inadequate, noting that many families are still searching for missing loved ones while fresh attacks continue to hit communities like Gbugbu in Edu LGA.
The protest organizers are demanding concrete security measures rather than administrative stopgaps.
They insist that the government must address the root causes of banditry and kidnapping that have turned Kwara North into a high-risk zone.
The youth leaders argue that resource allocation has been skewed, leaving their communities exposed to frequent raids by gunmen who operate with relative impunity.
By gathering at the Kwara Stadium Complex at 8:00 am on Thursday, the residents hope to force a more serious commitment to regional safety from Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s administration.
As tensions rise, there are concerns that the protest could escalate if the government does not engage with the organizers’ demands.
The region remains a flashpoint for insecurity, and the perceived neglect has created a deep sense of frustration among the local population.
