"We received the alert just like every other Nigerian, but we are not treating it with levity, despite viewing it as a mere rumour."
The police in Ekiti State are the latest security agency to announce they have begun reinforcement on security in border towns in the state over reports of an impending attack by terrorists.
Morounkeji Adesina, the police commissioner in the state, said the command is not treating the alarm with levity, even though it is yet to be confirmed.
He said he had ordered the scaling up of security in all the border towns in collaboration with other sister agencies and local security architectures.
He said his operatives were also keeping tabs on some suspected forests across the state so that they won't be caught unawares.
"We received the alert just like every other Nigerian, but we are not treating it with levity, despite viewing it as a mere rumour," Mr Adesina told journalists in Ado Ekiti on Tuesday.
"My men and officers are responding accordingly."
Fear of an attack by terrorists, who had already struck several times in the federal capital, Abuja, has been gradually spreading across south-west Nigeria.
The fear came after rumours of infiltration of the terrorists into forests in the region emerged on social media last week.
Gani Adams, the leader of the O'dua People's Congress, last week also raised the alarm that bandits had infiltrated some sprawling forests in Oyo, Ondo and Osun States.
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On Sunday, the police in Lagos said their officers had been placed on alert following reports of a planned attack by gunmen from border communities.
A day earlier, the State Security Services (SSS) arrested a suspected Boko Haram leader masquerading as a security man in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Joint operation
Mr Adeshina said the police are working with the SSS, NSCDC, local hunters, and Amotekun corps
"We are not alone in the operation," he said.
"We needed to fortify the borders because the bandits won't just fly into the forests, they will travel through the roads into the state and I think we have done enough in terms of security in our borders.
"I appeal to our people to help us with useful information. If they suspect any strange movement in any of the forests, let them alert us for prompt action."
Mr Adesina further allayed the fears of the residents, saying the inter-agency security networks being built across the six states of the Southwest were strong enough to nip any emergency in the bud.
The bandits had on Sunday ambushed and killed three policemen and five local vigilantes in Ajaokuta, sparking immediate reaction from the Kogi State government.
The terrorists had launched sustained attacks in Abuja after killing the men of the Guards Brigade.
The June 5 attack in Owo, Ondo State, where 41 persons lost their lives is still fresh in the minds of many residents and the current threat is creating an uneasy calm.
