Imo State will no longer be habitable for criminal elements as Imo State Governor, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha CON, has charged security agencies in the State to flush out criminals across the State.
The Governor gave the charge at an Expanded State Security Council meeting with Heads of various security agencies in the State such as Deputy Commissioners of Police, Unit Commanders, Area Commanders, DPOs and their equivalents across the security agencies in the State
He urged them to be proactive and put in place measures to contain the situation.
Governor Ihedioha harped on the importance for progress to be made in providing adequate security for citizens of the State. “There is no gain saying that we cannot make progress in government without security.”
“We as the elected, derive our mandate from the people who expect us to defend them. We want to plead with you to step up your responsibilities. We are not oblivious of the fact that you all take risks but you have to fish out the bad elements so that they can stop contaminating us”, he said.
“The potentials of greatness are huge in Imo State. Some people want to run down the State but we will never let them. On my part, I will remain honest with the people as we want to use our funds to govern our state and life better for the citizens who have groaned over the past years.
“The truth is that we need resources to tackle our problems and therefore we are working very hard, day and night for our State to look good again. We have a burden and we are determined to close the gap.
Governor Ihedioha made it clear that he has a duty to work for the people of the State who elected him into office.
“The people voted for us in expectation of a positive turnaround and as such I have a mandate to provide for them roads, water and power supply. We have significantly improved our revenue generation by over 300% within the short period
He said there is enormous burden on his administration to live up to expectations which needs the support of all and sundry to overcome.
We are paying for the misdeeds, carelessness and mindless character of the past administration and we can only solve these problems ourselves.
He charged the security agencies to place priority on protecting the innocent in the State, reminding them of their responsibility to make the State safe.
“We cannot succeed in combating crime without the security agencies. What should be of concern to you are the innocent men and women who could be victims of these criminals. Let us collectively flush out the criminals in Imo State. When you punish offenders, it will serve as deterrent to others” he stated.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Security matters, Mr. Raymond Nkemdirim, who spoke after the meeting, said it provided an opportunity for the Governor and Heads of the security agencies to find lasting solutions to the increasing rate of crime in the state capital, especially at Douglas Road and other flashpoints.
A 16 point communiqué was issued at the end of the meeting which focused on proactive and effective measures to combat crime in the State.
See full text of the Communique below
Chibuike Onyeukwu
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor
October 2, 2019
COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE EXPANDED STATE SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING BETWEEN IMO STATE GOVERNOR, RT. HON. EMEKA IHEDIOHA CON, HEADS OF SECURITY AGENCIES IN THE STATE, DEPUTY COMMISSIONERS OF POLICE, UNIT COMMANDERS, AREA COMMANDERS, DIVISIONAL POLICE OFFICERS AND THEIR EQUIVALENTS ACROSS THE SECURITY AGENCIES IN THE STATE, HELD ON 1ST OCTOBER 2019 AT THE SAM MBAKWE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, GOVERNMENT HOUSE, OWERRI.
IT WAS RESOLVED AS FOLLOWS:
1. That old methods of crime fighting
will be reviewed and replaced with
modern fighting techniques.
2. That drug abuse and cultism in the
State will be effectively combated.
3. That there is need for effective
multi-agency security training for
robust synergy in combating
crime in the State
4. That there is need for greater
involvement of the citizenry
in the development of
strategies for mitigating crime in
the State.
5. That members of the public
should be encouraged to assist
security agencies with timely
information in order to expose
criminals in the State.
6. That no member of the public
will be exposed to any danger
for volunteering information to
the security agencies.
7. That there should be a strong
legislation compelling hoteliers
to emplace measures to expose
criminals who lodge in their
facilities.
8. That most criminals in the State
are political thugs who are still
in possession of arms provided
for them by their political god-
fathers and these weapons
must be mopped up.
9. That amorphous legislations
relating to traditional rulers and
town unions in the State will be
reviewed with a view to
eliminating inherent
impediments to peace and
security in the Local
Government Areas.
10. That security commanders and
their operatives must be
domiciled in their areas of
operation to be able to
effectively combat crime.
11. That there should be greater
synergy among the security
agencies in the State.
12. That Operation Iron Gate
launched recently by the Imo
State Government is a welcome
initiative and its full
commencement will effectively
reduce crime and criminality in
the State.
13. That the various security
agencies pledged to rejig
their operational strategies
with a view to bringing an
immediate end to rising
criminality in the State
particularly Owerri Municipality.
14. That Imo State Government
will provide functional
vehicles to support the
operations of security agencies
in the State.
15. That Imo State Government will
ensure that security operatives
in the State are well
accommodated ; and
16. That Imo State Government will
take immediate steps to
reinvigorate the operations of
security agencies in the State by
providing all necessary equipment
and facilities within available
resources for the enhancement
of lasting peace in the State
