From John Adams, Minna
Niger state Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello has expressed confident that the new leadership of the Nigerian Army is capable of tackling the security challenges in the state and other parts of the country.
The Governor spoke in Minna on Tuesday when the General Officer Commanding, one Mechanized Division of the Nigerian Army, Maj. Gen. Danjuma Hamisu Ali paid him a courtesy visit at the government house.
The new GOC was in Minna as part of his tour of Military formations under his command where he briefed the Governor on plans by the Military to abduct different strategies towards curbing the activities of the bandits in the state and other parts of the country.
According to the Governor “I hope that the security challenges in the state will soon be taken care of because I can see that with the new leadership in the military they are really determined to address this security issues.” He said.
The Governor told the GOC that the current security challenges in the state and other parts of the country is great concern to government at all levels, stressing that “the state is disturbed, the entire country is disturbed”.
Governor Bello disclosed that the government always get privileged information about attacks by the bandits but the response from the security agents is very slow, adding that “I strongly believed that it is due to lack of manpower”.
The new GOC had earlier told his host that he was in the state as part of his tour of Military formations under his division, with a view to come up with a better strategy to tackle the security situation in the State.
He however, admitted that the major challenges facing the military in the fight against Insecurity in the state and other parts of the country is lack of manpower, adding that having additional battalion in the state would help in addressing the security situation.
Maj. Gen. Ali disclosed that one of the immediate plans is to establish a special force in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State and in Chikun Local Government in Kaduna State pointing out that those are areas where the insecurity is high.