From John Adams, Minna
All Progressive Congress (APC) gubernatorial Aspirant in Niger state, Alhaji Umar Sanda Abdullahi has said that the only way to address the current insecurity situation across the country is through a robust, efficient and well equipped local security outfit which according to him, every successful government at all levels has neglected.
The gubernatorial Aspirant believed that a well equipped local security outfit with a good knowledge of their locality, working in synergy with a well equipped and funded conventional security agencies, will effectively tackle the current worrisome security situation in the country.
Speaking in Minna on Saturday at his former declaration of intent to contest the governorship of the state under the platform of the ruling All Progressive Congress in 2023, Alhaji Umar listed security and agricultural development as his main priority if elected as governor, stressing that “we will develop and equip the local security outfit to work in synergy with the conventional security outfit in other address the situation.
According to him, no amount of efforts towards developing the agricultural sector or any other sector of the economy that can be achieved if the current security situation is not addressed.
Alhaji Umar Sanda Abdullahi, popularly refers to as USA, expressed concern over the current security challenges bedeviling Niger state, saying that half of the state is currently submerged by bandits activities, a situation, he pointed out has triggered the rate of poverty among the vast majority of the people, both at the rural and urban areas.
Alhaji Umar who said he decided to offer himself for service after an extensive and wide consultations with citizens of different backgrounds, experience and opinion, believed that Niger state at this point in time “deserve a highly committed leader that is both willing and able to mitigate the current difficulties and move the state forward developmentally.
“The state also desire a leader that possessed vast experience in entrepreneurship, a congestive understanding of the plights of the rural dwellers and a genuine acquaintance with contemporary urban renewal concepts and communal governance”.
To achieve this, he said the leadership must have a good background and a genuine interest in agriculture “to cash in on our agro-allied competitive advantage, leverage on it to propel our economy to prosperity.
“I felt duty bound to stem this ugly trend, by bringing to bear my entrepreneurial experience to enhance both individual and collective welfare and prosperity of our people in a well secured environment”, he submitted.
Investment in agriculture and entrepreneurship, he suggested, will greatly reduce unemployment among the youths in the country, adding that the growing security challenges occasioned by bandits activities in parts of the northern states can also be traced to unemployment.