Razaq Bamidele
Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State has said a collaborative approach by all sectors of the Nigerian population is urgently needed to successfully tackle and overcome security challenges in the country.
The governor said the cooperation of all security agencies, traditional rulers, community and religious leaders and all citizens is imperative to overcome insecurity and all forms of criminality.
He disclosed that he has been in constant touch with his counterparts in the neighbouring states of Ondo, Osun, Kogi and Kwara to secure boundary towns and villages which might be used by criminal elements to gain access to the state.
Governor Fayemi disclosed this at the opening ceremony of a three-day Federal and States’ Security Administrators’ Meeting (FSSAM) held at the Conference Hall of the Governor’s Office, Ado Ekiti, the state capital.
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The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Otunba Bisi Egbeyemi, warned that the current security challenges in the country should not be politicised but must be frontally tackled in synergy with all stakeholders.
He noted that the appropriateness and timing of the meeting cannot be overemphasized as it came at a time the country is facing various security challenges.
Governor Fayemi stressed that security of lives and property is crucial to socio-economic development which explained why his administration has taken proactive measures to curtail emerging security challenges.
Some of the measures, according to him, included donation of two units of Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) vehicles to the state Police Command, monthly financial assistance to the security agencies in the state and regular meeting of the State Security Council.
Others are inclusion of the informal security outfits in the security architecture of the state, enlistment of the support of traditional rulers in the maintenance of lives and property in their domains, security awareness campaign on the electronic media.
The rest are the establishment of the State Security Trust Fund to enable sustainable funding of crime prevention interventions, creation of an anti-crime outfit code-named ‘Operation Keep Ekiti Safe,’ resuscitation of Peace Corps and resuscitation of the Security Tracking System jettisoned by the immediate past administration.
The governor said: “The current security challenges in the country should not be politicised as the proliferation and possession of unlawful firearms call for increased security measures.
“And with what we are seeing now, it has become imperative to seek the cooperation of all security agencies, community and traditional leaders and other stakeholders for a safe and secure business climate.
“We are quite aware that there might be incursion of criminals from outside the state. Therefore, I have started contacting my counterparts in the neighbouring states with a view to synergising for more protection of lives and property along the boundary towns and villages.”
The governor added that hosting of the meeting was a demonstration of his administration’s interest in the security of the people expressing the belief that decisions reached would enrich the business of maintenance of law and order in the country.
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Speaking earlier, FSSAM Chairman, Dr. (Mrs.) Amina Shamaki, commended the Ekiti State government for hosting the parley aimed at developing workable solutions to security problems confronting the country.
Mrs. Shamaki, who is also the Permanent Secretary, Special Duties, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, said the Federal Government is concerned about the security challenges in some parts of the country and working hard to tackle them.
According to her, government is concerned about the incessant farmers-herders clashes saying part of the strategies to find solution is the engagement of all stakeholders.
Mrs. Shamaki urged Nigerians not to be oblivious of the predictions of the Nigerian Meteorology Agency (NIMET) on the pattern of rainfall because of its implication on security.
The meeting, which ends on Saturday, is being attended by officers the Police, Department of State Services, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigeria Prisons Service, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), National Agency for the Prohibition of
Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), among others.