From Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
Seven governorship candidates in the September 19, 2020 Edo State governorship election, on the platform of, Edo State Former Governorship Candidates Forum, (EFGCF), on Wednesday, tasked governor Godwin Obaseki on the need of procuring high-tech security devices for the security agencies to stem the tide of insecurity in the state.
The acting chairman of the group, Bishop Akhalamhe of Zenith Labour Party, (ZLP) made the call in Benin City while speaking on the spate of insecurity in the state
Akhalamhe while listing the group’s positions on the level of insecurity in the state said tribalism and nepotism should be totally be removed if the war of insecurity must be won.
“Be decisive on the issue of security and stop playing politics with human lives.
“Tribalism and nepotism should be espurged by government as regard this particular issue (there should be no sacred cow).
“The state governor should procure spy equipment such as helicopters, CCTV cameras etc to support our security agencies.
“All flash points should make it mandatory for every community to set up a security committee to defend their land.
“Whoever that wants to rear cows, should be ready to ranch them”, he said.
The ex-governorship candidate said that though insecurity has become a global phenomenon but more worrisome is the format it has taken in the state thereby depriving farmers to attend to their farms due to the fear of being attacked or killed.
“It is a known fact that the problem of insecurity has become a general phenomenon globally but the most worrisome to us as major stakeholders in Edo State and to every other Edolites, is the case of unprovoked attacks such as killings, kidnapping, raping, maiming etc by a group suspected to be Fulani herdsmen on the innocent and law abiding citizens of Edo State.
“Against this backdrop, it is no longer news that there is food shortage accord on the fear of the farmers going to farm for the risk of loosing their lives.
“That people can no longer travel within the state due to fear of being kidnapped and murdered by the above stated group.
“That our farmlands and crops have been destroyed and taken over by the same set of people and their cattle”, he said.
He said the EFGCF as a group find it very shocking and regrettable that all these nefarious activities have continued in the state unabated on the ground that nothing tangible has been done by the government and its security apparatus to address the ugly trend.