By Staff Reporter
Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has assured residents that his administration will protect every life in the state, declaring that no resident will be allowed to lose their life to insecurity.
Okpebholo made the declaration on Monday in Benin City while addressing Okaighele from the seven local government areas in Edo South Senatorial District on the need for stronger collaboration with security agencies to tackle insecurity.
The meeting, held at the Sir Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub along Airport Road, brought together security chiefs, vigilante groups, members of the Edo State Security Corps, community leaders and other security stakeholders.
According to a statement by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Dr. Patrick Akhere Ebojele, Okpebholo said security was a collective responsibility and urged community leaders and residents to promptly report suspicious activities and security threats.
«“Edo has a history. Edo must be protected as every soul, every life in this land matters to us as a government. We are not prepared to lose any soul in the state as a result of insecurity,” the governor said.»
He said his administration was determined to prevent criminals from outside the state from entering Edo to carry out kidnapping and other criminal activities.
“We are doing all we are doing to protect our land. We would not allow foreigners and people from other states into our land to kidnap our people. We all have a duty of collaboration to protect the state,” Okpebholo said.
The governor further assured residents that the security situation in Edo would improve significantly in the coming weeks, saying his administration had put strategies in place to strengthen security operations across the state.
«“In the next few weeks, Edo State will be safer than what it is today because we have put strategies on ground to police the state,” he said.»
Okpebholo disclosed that the government was working towards a rapid-response security system under which distress calls would trigger the deployment of between five and seven security vehicles within five minutes.
He added that motorcycles would also be provided to security personnel to enable them to reach remote areas, including forests where criminal elements may be hiding.
The governor said the meeting with Okaighele was designed to establish effective channels of collaboration between community leaders, the police, vigilante groups and other security agencies as part of efforts to strengthen community policing.
He said security agencies had been working late into the night to recover dangerous weapons and protect residents, adding that his administration had also recorded significant progress in the fight against cultism.
Okpebholo urged youths and community leaders to provide credible and timely information to security agencies to sustain the gains recorded in the fight against cultism, kidnapping and other crimes.
Recalling the kidnapping incident at the Vegetable Market, the governor said the suspects were arrested within 24 hours after allegedly travelling from another state to commit the crime in Edo.
«“If you commit crime in Edo State, you will be caught. We have arrested criminals who come from outside of Edo State, like in Niger, Kogi, Bauchi and other states, and we have rescued our people,” he said.»
The governor also warned that insecurity could discourage investors from coming to Edo, stressing that his administration was committed to creating a secure environment that would attract investment and stimulate economic growth.
The Commissioner for Public Safety and Security, Festus Ebea, commended Okpebholo for his efforts to tackle insecurity, saying the administration had demonstrated its commitment and capacity to combat cultism and kidnapping.
Ebea urged Okaighele to remain vigilant, report suspicious persons and activities, and provide timely and accurate information to security agencies.
Similarly, the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Patrick Daaor, commended the governor for convening the meeting and urged Okaighele to regard themselves as custodians of security in their respective communities.
Daaor called for closer cooperation between community leaders and security agencies to improve intelligence gathering and crime prevention.
The Commander of the 107 Air Force Base, Air Commodore Victor Eze Only, said Edo was making progress in the area of security, adding that the necessary machinery had been put in place to tackle criminal elements in the state.
Also speaking, the Special Adviser on Community and Traditional Matters, Chief Emmanuel Iyase, said the Oba of Benin was organising Okaighele in various communities to support the governor’s security efforts.
Iyase said the governor had joined forces with traditional and community leaders to strengthen security across the state, adding that Okpebholo had directed Okaighele in Edo South to establish committees across communities to improve collaboration with the government on security matters.
