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Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
Chairman, South East Governors’ Forum, Chief David Nweze Umahi, has assured residents that the governors have evolved a new security architecture that will provide a formidable policing process to comprehensively tackle the menace of criminalities in the zone.
He said this in an exclusive interview in a television programme, yesterday.
The analysis on the new security architecture of the south eastern states as detailed by Umahi showed a more inclusive, integrative and collaborative security relationships among the five governors, whereby a central coordinating unit in Enugu will be equipped to track daily security histories, analyse and provide supportive measures to arrest every insecurity situation that may occur in any part of the zone.
All the states will fortify their respective local vigilante outfits, train and empower them to assist conventional security outfits to flush out criminals, whether in the day or in the night or in the forest or anywhere within their jurisdictions and ensure the prosecution of those arrested by them, he said.
The South East is noted to have the lowest insecurity profile among the six geopolitical zones owing to the effectiveness of the local vigilante groups of the five states.
However, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Igbo National Council (INC), has issued a 90-day ultimatum to the governors to inaugurate a regional security outfit to protect citizens.
In a communique after a meeting, National President of INC, Chilos Godsent, said the group rejected the proposal by the Inspector General of Police for the governors to adopt community policing for the zone.
It also condemned the “naked cowardice exhibited by the governors of the South-East zone on the failures to establish and officially inaugurate the highly demanded South-East Regional security outfit, like their contemporaries in the North-West and South-West zones.
“We wish to inform the people of the Igbo race that the proposed community policing by the IGP is meant to officially aid the framework for intelligence gathering and invasion of Igbo communities by the jihadist.
The Igbo National Council request governors of the South-East, South-South and North-Central zones respectively as a matter of urgent necessity to establish and officially inaugurate their regional security outfits like the South-West (Amotekun) and North-West (Sege KA Fasa) within 90 days from February 29, as a sign of patriotism and commitment to the security and welfare of their citizens.
“We note that failure for the governors of the aforementioned geopolitical zones to adhere to this call, the self-determination groups in those geopolitical zones may be compelled to take their destiny into their own hands in other to protect their citizens from the rampaging Fulani jihadist.”
Godsent said INC supported the call by the National Assembly urging President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the service chiefs.
He said the reality on ground had showed that the service chiefs could no longer protect lives and properties of Nigerians from being killed “like cows and chickens by Boko Haram, Fulani herdsmen and jihadists.”
The group also condemned the wanton arrest and arbitrary detention of elders and people of Ifite-Ogwari community in Anyamelum Local Government Area of Anambra State .
