Security
By Anthony Isibor
THE South-East governors have agreed to launch a new security outfit to tackle the raising insecurity challenges in the region.
The governors met with the heads of security agencies in the region yesterday, April 11, 2021, in Owerri, the Imo state capital for its first South-East security summit to discuss the best ways to resolve the security challenges bedeviling the region in recent past.
A communiqué that was released at the end of the meeting had among other things, the floating of a regional security outfit called Ebube Agu.
“The meeting appreciated the formation of the South East joint security outfit named Ebubeagu with Headquarters in Enugu to coordinate its activities in the South East.
“Southeast Governors requested the Acting IGP to stop the influx of IGP monitory units, but to allow CPS and state and Zonal commands to handle their cases.
“Meeting approves that the acting IGP and other security chiefs do invite the leadership of Ohaneze Ndigbo and CAN to find out the reason for increasing insecurity in the South East.
“It also agreed that military policing in the southeast should be adequately funded and become effective.
The governors, who were united with the federal government in their condemnation of all forms of banditry and terrorism in Nigeria reached the following agreement:
“To strongly and unequivocally condemn terrorism and banditry in any parts of Nigeria, particularly in the southeast. The meeting strongly condemns the burning of police stations, violent attacks on custodial centers with the unlawful release of inmates, and the killings, including security personnel, natives/farmers, and headsmen.
“That the five South-East states are on the same page with the federal government on the issue of security challenges in the country. To this end, the meeting makes it absolutely clear that the Southeast will stand resolutely with the federal government to fight terrorists and bandits to a finish.”
The South-East governors also reached an agreement with the heads of security agencies in the zone to bring together all the arsenals at their command, as one united zone to fight and flush out criminals and terrorists from the zone.
“The summit resolved that to achieve this, there is a need to galvanize all the relevant stakeholders in the southeast, the political class, the business community, the bureaucrats and the intelligentsia to provide all necessary support to security operatives in the five southeast states to ensure total success in the fight against criminality in the zone.
“The heads of all the security agencies in the southeast have resolved to exchange intelligence in a seamless, effective new order that will help to checkmate crime in the zone.
“That to fast track crime-busting in the southeast, the heads of security agencies have been mandated to draw up a comprehensive list of their logistics and material needs for sustainable success in the fight against criminality, for the immediate provision by the leadership of the South East,” it said.
To achieve these, the governors also resolved to set up a committee comprising all relevant stakeholders in the fight against insecurity, which will meet quarterly.
“That a committee made up of security personnel, government officials and relevant stakeholders be set up to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the southeast joint security platform.
“To applaud the initiative of the Southeast security summit and to make it a statutory summit that will convene every quarter while its hosting shall rotate among the five southeast states,” it said.
While the governors encouraged the peaceful coexistence of farmers and headers to allow governors to succeed in the fight against criminality, they, however, reiterated the ban on open grazing in the zone and urged the security agencies to implement the ban.
– Apr. 12, 2021 @ 12:32 GMT
A.I
Tags: South-East to launch new security outfit
