Charles Ajunwa
30 June 2009
Lagos — Apparently persuaded by patriotism to ensure that his home state, Anambra, is rid of the alarming increase in violent crimes such as armed robbery and kidnapping, Mr. Emeka Etiaba, who is a governorship aspirant under the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), convened a Security Awareness Summit on Anambra State last Thursday in Lagos. The summit was attended by security experts and Anambrarians from within and outside the country.
Eminent personalities who graced the occasion included former Assistant Inspector of Police (AIG), Ezidinma Ifejika, who chaired the occasion. Ifejika in his opening remark, said having retired from the Nigerian Police Force as an AIG, that he is now worried and concerned over the increasing violent crimes in Anambra State, which he alleged had forced many businessmen and other citizens from the state to relocate their businesses to other states considered safer places in the country.
"I'm concerned. We are moving out, our people are moving out and businessmen are moving out all because of the crime situation. Crimes are not difficult to handle except that the approach is not correct", he stated.
AIG Ifejika (rtd) called on the Anambra State government to tap into the experiences of retired commissioners of police and other top security experts from the state, whom he said are ready to assist the state government to bring violent crimes to a halt in Anambra. He suggested that the state government should emulate the crime fighting strategy of Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola.
"Governor Fashola has done wonderfully well for security in Lagos State. He works in close liaison with the police. He gets the police mobilised, improves on the welfare of the monitoring team. Rivers State government has also attained the same feat. But it's not the same in Anambra State.
"You cannot isolate police. The experiences of the retired officers are very important. Put up your security team it's not the police alone; State Security Services (SSS), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) should lead in the fight against crime. You need the skill of these people to get it right," Ifejika said.
Etiaba in his brief remark simply said "the fear of crime in Anambra State is the beginning of wisdom" hence the urgent need to bring all stakeholders together to brainstorm and come up with solutions which the organisers of the summit would later pass on to the Anambra State government for them to apply to stop the increasing rate of crimes in the state.
According to K.E. Anadu, a retired Commissioner of Police, in his paper titled: "Communications Aids to the Fight against Kidnapping and Other Social Ills in Anambra State," the use of Information Communications Technology (ICT) would ensure the safety of lives property in Anambra State, adding that ingenuity is needed to defeat this evil that has invaded the country and Anambra State in particular.
To tackle violent crimes head on in Anambra State, Anadu called on the federal, state and local governments to assist the security agencies, particularly the police by providing them with Close-Circuit Television (CCTV) networks which he said help immensely in crime prevention and detection. Apart from the use of ICT, Anadu called for the use of traditional methods of communicating like family/community screening and use of traditional methods of information dissemination to augment the efforts of the police to combat crimes in Anambra State.
CP Anadu remarked further, "In the final analysis, all the efforts will achieve limited success unless our leaders at all levels, have a change of heart and change their lifestyle. The problem in Anambra State, nay the whole Igboland is more sociological than any other thing. The love for quick money is a phenomenon that came with the civil war. Our value system has changed and people are no longer respected because of their integrity and hard work but by the amount of money they can display, no matter the source.
"The permanent solution to these ills, is for us to find our way back to our old values of integrity and hard work. A system of reward and punishment should also be put in place to act as a deterrent," Anadu added.
Mr. Frank Odita, another former Commissioner of Police and a well known security expert, in his paper titled: "Prevention/Managing Kidnapping for Extortion or Ransome" said that security consciousness is very important in people's daily living. Poverty and incompetent leadership, according to Odita, were responsible for the criminal activities that now abound in the society. He blamed politicians for the current tide in crimes like armed robbery and kidnapping, noting that these weapons of destruction were freely supplied to the hoodlums by politicians during their electioneering campaign.
Chief J.C. Okafor, a former Commissioner of Police in his paper titled: "Siege on Anambra State by Perpetrators Of Armed Robbery," said in the last six months hardly had a day passed without a tale of attack by armed robbers and kidnappers in Anambra State. He attributed the causes of these crimes to the proliferation of arms and ammunition, abandonment of responsibility by government, unemployment, abandonment of societal responsibilities by the stakeholders and proliferation of drug and beer parlour joints.
According to him, the solution to these crimes lies with government and stakeholders. Anambra State governor, the state commissioner of police, the SSS and Civil Defence Corps, according to Okafor, should step up collection of criminal intelligence cardoon and search to rid the state of arms and ammunition and embark on awareness campaign in their communities. "Traditional rulers in the communities and president generals know the bad eggs in their community who harbour arms and itinerant criminals. If our land is free from violent crimes, and of course if we fix our electricity problem, investors will be here. There will bee more room for employment. The robbery incidents will be reduced to tolerable levels.
"I pray that the Almighty God we praise and worship, will give us the collective will to face this monster that is hampering social and economic development of our nation and beloved, Anambra," Okafor declared.
Dr. Ona Ekhomu, Chairman, Trans-World Security, whose paper was titled: "Role of the Citizens in Combating Violent Crimes" said that violent crime is a grave social problem in Anambra State, noting that the citizens must partner with government to solve the problem. Moghalu on his part, claimed he participated as a member of US military intelligence division, said he would assist Anambra State government to curb the violent crimes in the state.
Other participants who participated in the summit who recalled their experiences in Anambra State, thanked the organisers of the event and expressed hope that the ideas raised at the meeting was at the end of the day made available to the Anambra State government.
But in another development, Paul Odenigbo, Secretary to the Anambra State Government, last Friday, during a press briefing with newsmen on the security situation in the state, said Governor Peter Obi, since he assumed office three years ago with collaborative efforts from the state Police Command, the State Security Services and the unalloyed support of the citizenry ensured that the crime situation continued to improve.
"This made it possible for investors and international donor agencies to return to Anambra and contribute their quotas to the overall development of the State. Unfortunately, recent disturbing reports have indicated the return of crime in the State, especially in the area of kidnapping. In so far as Nigeria is concerned, the crime of kidnapping did not originate here in Anambra State. It came from the creeks of some oil-producing States. But its unwelcome effects have virtually spread to all parts of the Federation.
"Because of the killings and kidnapping of our citizens, Anambra State Government has taken an uncompromising position against the twin crime of murder and kidnapping and its perpetrators. This explains why the State Government has made it a capital offence with death penalty as the ultimate sanction. A security summit was convened in Awka on April 30th this year. In addition, the Governor has instituted a cash reward of two million naira for any person who volunteers useful information that will lead to the arrest of armed robbers or kidnappers. He has also procured two Armoured Personnel carriers (APCs) and increased other logistical support to the security operatives in the State. His Excellency has similarly written the Inspector-General of Police, requesting for an increase in the number of Police Personnel in the State. As a result of these steps, I can state without fear of contradiction that, according to all available records, the crime of kidnapping is subsiding in Anambra State when compared with the statistics from other Southeast and South-south Zones of the country. Recently the State Security Service arrested and paraded the gang of kidnappers which kidnapped a four-year old boy at Onitsha. The 3-man gang was arrested at Imo State University.
"In the same vain, the group that kidnapped Chief Paul Okonkwo, the Managing Director of PokoBros Group of Companies has also been arrested by the State Police Command. Yet, the media are full of reports that tend to point to our dear State as the only one currently afflicted by the virus of kidnapping.
"There is no iota of doubt that these negative reports, which do not reflect the true position of things, are the handiwork of some disgruntled elements and other detractors who believe that they have nothing better to do than to fan the embers of hatred and disaffection. We urge all such persons to give peace a chance and retrace their steps because they are doing grave disservice to Ndi-Anambra. It is our expectation that these disgruntled elements should denounce the crime of kidnapping and its perpetrators rather than criticizing the Government that is fighting to preserve security of lives and property.
"After careful consideration of the whole issue of kidnapping, Government came to the conclusion that those involved in this criminal activity are driven by a number of factors. These include the urge to make easy money, sexual immorality, scandalous display of affluence, militarization of society due to communal conflicts, chieftaincy tussles and political thuggery, etc. Government also found that most of those involved in this criminal activity are within the 18-40 years age bracket.
Nonetheless, the situation is not beyond redemption with continued cooperation between Government and the larger society. We call on individuals and communities to cooperate and partner with the security agencies to solve the problem. We urge a new impetus in moral education at home and at school. We request that individuals be on a perpetual state of alert at all times, while adopting relevant measures to combat the kidnappers at all times. We demand respect for the rule of law.
Also, we have made formal representation to providers of communication equipment, including mobile phones, to introduce tracking devices to help in the apprehension of the criminals. Furthermore, we have pointed out to the security agencies to adopt new and original methods of investigations better suited for cases of kidnapping.
"I am sure that the war against kidnapping will be won just as Anambra State emerged victorious in all other evil schemes devised to keep it down and out. It bears repetition to state that Anambra State has the lowest cases of kidnapping in the South East and South-south States today. Let us work towards a new dawn in which kidnapping will amount to an evil against our people that is past and well behind us," Odenigbo said.
Other eminent attendees of the summit included Chief J.C. Okafor, Major Chris Moghalu (rtd), His Royal Highness, Igwe A.U. Obiora, Chief Eric Okoye, former Managing Director of National Oil, Arch. Okechukwu Ogo, Mr. Emeka Ngige, SAN, Mr. Ben Chuks Nwosu and many others.
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