Insecurity: Benue LG Chairmen move to expand community-based public safety model across state

From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi

As part of efforts to build safer communities in Benue State, Chairmen of the 23 Local Government Areas (LGAs), have commenced moves to expand the People-Centred Public Safety (PCPS) model across the state.

The chairmen will meet in Makurdi on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, following the adoption of the PCPS model by the Benue State Government as a state-wide approach to strengthening public safety and community participation in security matters.

The engagement is being convened by the Benue State Bureau of Homeland Security in partnership with Lawyers Alert, under the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Benue State chapter.

In a statement signed and made available to newsmen in Makurdi on Monday, the President of Lawyers Alert, Dr Rommy Mom said the meeting will draw lessons from the implementation of the model in Guma, Katsina-Ala and Agatu LGAs, where Community Policing Committees (CPCs) have been used to promote community participation in identifying and responding to security concerns.

The LG chairmen are expected to examine how the CPC structure can be adapted to their respective areas to strengthen collaboration between communities, government authorities, security agencies and other stakeholders.

Under the PCPS model, Mom said communities are placed at the centre of public safety efforts, with emphasis on early warning and response, dialogue, mediation, information sharing and locally driven solutions to security challenges.

He said the proposed expansion is expected to strengthen coordination among local government councils, citizens and security institutions, while giving communities a greater role in shaping responses to threats affecting their safety.

Mom said the engagement would also help translate the state government’s adoption of the PCPS model into practical action at the community level.

According to him, the initiative is aimed at strengthening citizens’ participation as active partners in building safer, peaceful and accountable communities across Benue State.