(From Noah Ebije, Kaduna)
The Kaduna State Government has started screening youths in its preparation to commence community policing to tackle the general insecurity in the State.
The Acting Governor, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, chaired a meeting which is part of the consultations in the three senatorial districts on how to address insecurity on Monday.
The meeting had senators, members of the House of Representatives, state House of Assembly members and chairmen from the 15 Local Government Areas in Kaduna North and Kaduna Central senatorial zones as well as District Heads in attendance.
Speaking with reporters after the meeting, the senator representing Kaduna Central zone, Malam Uba Sani, said they came together to look into the security problem facing Kaduna, stressing that insecurity needs to be tackled collectively.
Uba Sani noted he was working on a bill to restructure police architecture, to meet contemporary challenges, adding that if it scales through, the bill will create a state police force.
‘I’m working on a bill to restructure the police architecture, that will pave way for federal and state police. We want to solve insecurity in the State and Nigeria as a whole,’ he said.
According to Senator Sani, ‘’we will involve the community in tackling insecurity in the State, through traditional and political leaders. Our governor is determined to end insecurity in the State.’’
Also speaking, a lawmaker representing Kajuru/Chikun federal constituency at the National Assembly, Hon Yakubu Umar Barde, commended Governor Nasir El-Rufai for his efforts in tackling insecurity.
Barde argued that insecurity affects everyone in the society, irrespective political affiliations, ethnicity or religious beliefs.
‘The Commissioners of Local Government and Internal Security have briefed us during the meeting. You know state governors have no control over security. We are working on restructuring the police architecture to enhance our ability to solve insecurity,’’ he added.
On his part, the Commissioner of Local Government, Alhaji Ja’afaru Sani, said the State will commence thorough screening of selected youths by their district heads for community policing to fight insecurity.
‘We plan to adopt community policing in our communities to complement security. We asked district heads to select honest youths and send to Local Government for thorough screening for community policing. We are confident that community policing will solve the insecurity issue,’ he said.
Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs Samuel Aruwan, who made a presentation on government efforts and steps in tackling insecurity, said the government will continue to engage traditional, community, political leaders among others to end it.
