Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party on Thursday lamented the security challenges facing the country, calling on the Federal Government to create state police.
They insisted that for Nigeria to overcome the challenges,
the present police structure must be decentralised to give way for the
establishment of state police across the country.
The PDP governors spoke in Jos on Thursday when they visited
Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State at the Rayfield Government House
following the series of attacks by gunmen, which had claimed over 200 lives in
the past one month with properties worth millions of naira destroyed in various
communities of the state.
The PDP governors on the visit were Seyi Makinde of Oyo
State, Ahmadu Fintiri, Adamawa; Peter Mbah, Enugu; Godwin Obaseki, Edo; and
Ademola Adeleke, Osun State.
They announced the donation of N100m to the victims of the
Plateau attacks.
In an interview with journalists after the visit, the
Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum and Governor of Bauchi State, Bala
Muhammed, who spoke on their behalf said, “We are just being very honest with
ourselves. We are not just indicting unreasonably the Nigeria police or the
security agencies as they are doing their best, but certainly the ratio of the
citizens to the number of policemen is too low and the state governors know the
peculiarities of their states, local governments, towns and villages.
“Nigerians want to sleep with their eyes closed and go about
their normal duties peacefully, that is why we’re calling on the Federal
Government to up its game by considering the establishment of state police in
the country.
“There is no dissent between the governors and the national
level but we need to get some decentralisation of the security apparatus so
that we can enhance good governance by having good state police.”
Muhammed said the absence of state police was why different
states were organising vigilantes, noting that governors in the North had begun
to take a cue from their counterparts in the South-West, who formed Amotekun.
“We have seen what
happened in Zamfara, Katsina, and other places. This is because Nigerians want
to sleep with their two eyes closed and the PDP, as the party, has always
ensured good governance,” he said.
The PDP governors commended Mutfwang’s “excellent handling
of the situation (killings), despite the court battles you had to handle.”
“And so, we’re donating the sum of N100m in support of the
victims of these unfortunate incidents, knowing that you are an accommodating
governor who values inclusiveness with the understanding that Plateau State is
home to all,” Muhammed added.
Mutfwang thanked the
PDP governors for the visit and their kind gesture, saying the people of
Plateau State would remain grateful.
“Like Governor Bala
Muhammed said, you had a situation, particularly in the last administration
where you are tempted to think that even the perpetrators of the insecurity
were even being supervised by the state and this has made them become
emboldened to continue to unleash terror on innocent lives but by the grace of
God, we are not deterred.
“We are also trying to ensure that we build inter and
intra-community harmony. One thing I have said consistently since becoming
governor is that nobody can do it alone. We need unity across the divides of
faith, across the divides of ethnicity. If we don’t achieve it, it’s going to
be difficult for the country to be secure. So I’ve always advocated that we
must do our best to ensure that we rebuild trust among our people.
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