State police remain solution to killings —ASOMBEN

WORRIED by the recent killings in Nigeria, especially in the northern part of the country, the Secretary-General Association of Middle Belt Ethnic Nationalities (ASOMBEN), Reverend James Pam, has tasked the Federal Government to revisit the issue of state police and for the interim ordered the military to flush out terrorist elements from Nigeria forests. 

According to him, the spate of killings of innocent souls has become unbearable and denting the image of the country. 

He said there was no way the economy of the country could pick up under the current chaotic situation. 

“Security of Nigeria should be paramount. This government is not ready to fight the menace head-on. I don’t want to believe that our military and other security agencies cannot handle this situation. What is lacking is political will. 

“These terrorists are not on the moon, but in our forests and many government officials have repeatedly said they know where they are. Then, what stops the military from moving in to flush them out? 

“The country is tired of this rhetoric of condemnations and no proper action to tackle the security challenges. In one week alone, more than 200 people were killed by these terrorists and we want investors to come in. No nation can develop under this kind of insecurity. 

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“The Federal Government should order the military to move in and do the needful. They can do it. The National Assembly, in conjunction with other relevant organs of government, should revisit the issue of state police. This is very important to arrest the situation,” he said. 

He advised President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately withdraw all military men and other security personnel attached to private individuals and other establishments and deploy them to areas where there is a shortage of personnel to fight the insurgency. 

“It is extremely wrong for top government officials and elected politicians to have a retinue of security men guarding them, while there is not enough security personnel to protect the citizenry,” he said. 

Also speaking, a Professor of Political Economy, who is also a former PDP stalwart, Professor Haruna Dabin, said the security in Nigeria called for sober reflection. He alleged some level of complicity on the part of those in government. 

“I think I will go by the late General Sani Abacha’s position who said when a crisis goes beyond two days, the government must have a hand in it. 

“Our military can crush these terrorists, but it is either there is complicity or a lack of political will on the part of both the government and the security agencies,” he said.