Oyo State Police Command has arrested 11 travelers for violating the inter-state movement restriction, while attempting to sneak into Akure, Ondo State capital through Ibadan.

After explaining that they (travelers) came from Sokoto to return to their  families in Ondo state since being away for four weeks due to the lockdown order. The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde insisted that the travelers would be released to the Sokoto State government after taking a COVID-19 test which was on going at the time of this report.

Governor Makinde made the remark after receiving a briefing from the Commissioner of Police in Oyo, Sina Olukolu, at the Gbagi Police Station where the culprits were detained overnight in Ibadan, the state capital.

The travelers were apprehended at the Asejire Dam axis of the Ibadan-Osun boundary,

While disclosing of the directives that the travelers will be kept isolated in Ibadan till their test result are confirmed,  Oyo State Governor mentioned that he had contacted the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, to say that the travelers would be sent back to Sokoto State after the test confirmation

“We are not able to explain how they got here in the first place because there is inter-state lockdown throughout the country. They claimed they came from Sokoto and they must have passed through so many states.”

“It is a discussion going on with the rest governors in Nigeria because inter-state lockdown was put in place for a particular reason and what we have agreed to do is, in each individual state where you have inter-state motor parks, there must be on lockdown. If they are locked down, at least 80 to 85 per cent of our problems would have been solved. It is an ongoing discussion and I believe that will be the ultimate way to go”.

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At interrogation, while the medical team of the COVID-19 Task Force were at the police station to administer COVID-19 tests on the travellers to determine their status, the driver of the bus, Muritala Aliyu, mentioned they went through old roads and bushes from Sokoto to Niger and Kwara States and then got into Ogbomoso, from where they entered Ibadan, adding that they were going to Akure “to reconcile with their family members”.