Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has commended the Nigerian Army and the Chief of Army Staff for the approval of additional military formations in the state, describing the expansion as a significant step toward strengthening security.
Makinde spoke on Wednesday through his deputy, Bayo Lawal, at a sensitisation programme for Oyo indigenes and stakeholders on the Nigerian Army’s 92 Regular Recruits Intake (RRI) for Trades and Non-Tradesmen and Women.
The governor expressed appreciation for the newly approved military presence in Oyo, which includes a brigade and battalion in Oyo town, an infantry battalion in Kishi, an artillery regiment battalion in Iseyin and another battalion in Oriire.
The approvals come amid the Federal Government’s wider expansion of the Nigerian Army’s operational presence across the country.
President Bola Tinubu had on October 4 announced that new Army formations had been operationalised in Oyo, Osun, Zamfara and Kebbi states to bring troops closer to vulnerable communities and improve response to security threats.
A few days earlier, the General Officer Commanding 2 Division, Major General A.B. Mahmuda, had disclosed that military battalions had been approved for Iseyin and Kishi, with the formations to operate under a newly established military brigade and garrison in Oyo.
Against that background, Makinde described the Army’s sensitisation campaign as timely, particularly in view of recent security challenges, including banditry.
He said only organised and identifiable institutions such as the Nigerian Army could effectively confront security threats of such magnitude, while stressing the importance of strengthening the capacity of security agencies.
Makinde also used the occasion to encourage qualified youths in Oyo State to consider military service as both an employment opportunity and a form of national service.
He said although the state government had employed more than 23,000 people into the civil and public service since 2019, thousands of qualified young people were still without jobs.
According to him, joining the Nigerian Army provides young Nigerians with meaningful employment, structured career opportunities and the chance to serve the country.
The governor assured that his administration would widely disseminate information about the recruitment exercise across the state and expressed confidence that Oyo youths would respond positively.
He urged qualified indigenes to take advantage of the opportunity and appealed to traditional, religious and community leaders to ensure that the information reaches residents across the state’s 33 local government areas.
Speaking on the 92 RRI exercise, the team lead, Brigadier General Olusegun Okungbure, said the sensitisation programme was designed to encourage eligible youths to enlist.
Okungbure said the recruitment exercise commenced on September 9, 2026, and would end on October 21.
He confirmed that qualified male and female indigenes of Oyo State are eligible to apply.
He also emphasised that the application is free and warned prospective applicants to use only the official Nigerian Army recruitment portal.
The Army officer explained that the current sensitisation drive followed an earlier recruitment effort ordered by the Chief of Army Staff after Oyo recorded a low turnout of applicants.
Although the intervention increased the number of applications from the state, he said Oyo still fell short of its allotted quota of successful candidates.
Okungbure therefore urged youths across the 33 local government areas to regard enlistment as a call to national service rather than merely an avenue for securing employment.
He highlighted opportunities for national integration, foreign exposure and peacekeeping operations, as well as improved welfare and access to medical care, among the benefits of military service.
In his vote of thanks, the Executive Adviser to the Governor on Security Coordination, Major General Lukman Omoniyi (retd.), thanked Makinde for his support for security agencies and urged stakeholders to take the recruitment message to their communities.
Earlier, the Olugbon of Orile Igbon, Oba Francis Olusola Alao, appealed to parents to support their wards who meet the requirements to register for the recruitment exercise.
He also urged applicants to comply strictly with the stipulated entry requirements to improve the state’s chances of meeting its recruitment quota.
