The Peoples Democratic Party in Kwara State has accused Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of failing to confront the escalating banditry crisis, following Sunday’s deadly attack in Oke-Ode, Ifelodun Local Government Area, which left several residents and vigilante members dead.

In a statement on Monday signed by its Publicity Secretary, Olusegun Olusola Adewara, the Kwara PDP described the massacre as “a despicable and senseless act” that had thrown the state into mourning, blaming the governor for what it called “monumental leadership failure.”

“The gruesome videos of the casualties circulating online make it look like Kwara is now at war. Under AbdulRahman’s watch, terror is reigning, kidnappers are taking over rural villages, and nowhere is safe again,” the PDP said.

The opposition party faulted AbdulRazaq’s alleged silence and absence from the affected community, insisting that a responsible leader should have personally visited Oke-Ode to commiserate with victims’ families and give assurances of decisive action.

It further accused the governor of neglecting local vigilantes and security personnel “battling criminals in the bush,” while diverting funds to “footballers and entertainers outside the state.”

The PDP’s criticism comes amid rising concern in Kwara North, where repeated bandit attacks have forced residents to abandon farms, schools, and businesses.

On Sunday, gunmen stormed Oke-Ode at dawn, killing the Baale of Ogbayo and several vigilantes in a raid that shook the state.

A coalition of Nupe groups under the Nupe Descendants Union also joined calls for urgent intervention, urging the governor to reinforce security deployments, improve intelligence gathering, and personally visit communities under siege.

“Our people live a life of uncertainty; they cannot sleep with their eyes closed. Lives and properties are wasted, farmlands are no longer accessible, and commercial activities have been paralysed,” NDU President, Alhaji Shuaibu Mohammed, said at a press briefing in Ilorin.

The groups linked the persistence of attacks to poor roads in Kwara North, particularly the Patigi–Gbugbu–Lafiagi–Tsaragi–Bacita axis, which they described as a death trap exploited by armed bandits.

The Oke-Ode killings add to a growing list of violent incidents in Edu, Patigi, Moro, and Ifelodun LGAs, including the murder of a pharmacist in Patigi, the shutdown of the International Gbugbu Market, and the killing of a young driver at Esanti village.