Anambra is rising and a tiny minority of miscreants cannot stop this

There have been reports of violent attacks on citizens and even against security personnel in the south east – especially on Mondays, a day non-state actors would wish to enforce an illegal sit-at-home directive – probably in a bid to continuously instill fear on the residents of the south east who intend to go about their normal businesses on Mondays. But this cannot continue because the future of the south east is at stake.

In Abia, the state government has blamed opposition politicians for the unprecedented wave of attacks against army personnel in the state. The state government alleged that the violence and the killing of soldiers which occurred a few days ago were the handwork of “unpatriotic opposition politicians in connivance with external forces”. The state government exonerated IPOB. (This is coming on the wake of the killing of two soldiers a few days ago at a checkpoint at Ekenobizi, Umuopara, an Abia community in Umuahia South Local Government Area at the border with neighbouring Imo State).

The official statement released by Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, Special Adviser to the Abia State Governor on Media and Publicity, should not be swept under the carpet. Mr. Ekeoma’s closing remarks in Abia State’s official release that Abia has instituted “a new counter offensive,” in order “to decimate every structure of terror erected or being erected in any Abia territory by criminals” should be applauded by all well-meaning Nigerians. It does not matter who is behind these attacks: people behind it must be brought to book. The south east must return back to what it was many years ago: a peaceful and tranquil region.

In Anambra, the playbook of these non-state actors, who are mostly coming from outside Anambra, seem to be the same. There has been a pocket of attacks in the past few days. They intend to instill fear on residence and throw a spanner on all the massive developmental projects and initiatives going on in Anambra. [This is because bad news travels very fast]. But this should be resisted by well-meaning Nigerians. Security is everyone’s business.

Other criminal issues related to kidnapping have taken an economic dimension as the payment of ransom seems to be a huge source of revenue for these non-state actors. The financial incentive seems huge for these kidnappers and the more these criminals are decimated the more they get new recruits. This column believes that the solution to this menace would require more than brute force.

In Anambra, Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s approach of a combination of community policing, intelligence gathering and technology seem to be the way to go. This is commendable.

In the coming weeks, Anambra would have a high-tech command and control centre which would boost intelligence and information gathering. This centre will act as a central hub for monitoring, coordinating, and responding to security threats in real-time, gathering data from various sources like surveillance cameras, and emergency calls in order to facilitate quick decision-making and dispatch appropriate responses. It will be the nerve center for a state-wide security operation and this center will augment the activities of the police force in the state. This technology will be supported with community policing initiatives in Anambra State.

The strategy to keep Anambra safe is well defined and it will involve the support of all well-meaning residents of Anambra. This is not a time to play politics as a gubernatorial candidate in the last elections has resorted to. This is not a time to dish out populists’ propaganda rhetoric as the former gubernatorial candidate is doing.  It is the duty of every well-meaning Nigerian to offer advice and solutions in order to end this menace. Security is everybody’s business! Security personnel work better with intelligence.

Today, in Nigeria, everyone agrees that the nation’s police force needs improved funding, re-training and orientation and the recruitment of additional personnel, who, off course should be well-equipped. In many communities around the country, existing police stations are nothing to write home about. They lack basic amenities like computers, forensic investigation equipment, operational vehicles and stationaries. Yet, many are still surprised with the spate of crime in the country. Unfortunately, when there are outbreaks of crime, many people callout governors. [Maybe because they are called chief security officers in their respective states even though they do not have the power to hire and fire top police and military personnel]. The debate on reviving the nation’s police force and on community policing needs to be on the front burner in the country. This column is optimistic and strongly believes that President Bola Tinubu will address the rot in the nation’s police architecture in the renewed hope initiatives. The problem in the nation’s police force predates President Tinubu’s administration. This column believes that Tinubu’s minister of police affairs is equal to the task.

In Anambra, Governor Soludo’s vision is clear and the economic foundation to take Anambra to the next level are being laid. The core pillars of Governor Soludo’s vision are being addressed effectively. Today, Governor Soludo has prudently managed Anambra’s resources and has been able to bring about significant infrastructural projects that would change the economic landscape of Anambra forever. Interested readers could have a glimpse of some of these projects in this link: https://www.thecable.ng/on-5-mega-projects-executed-by-soludo-without-borrowing-a-penny/

Governor Soludo requires the support of every resident of Anambra in his bid to make Anambra safer. Anambra is ready for tourists and investments. A very tiny minority of miscreants cannot stop this.