Edo State Government said it has commenced the recruitment of 3,600 youths across the state to help provide local security intelligence and sustain security of lives and property.
The 3600 youths to be sourced from the 18 local government areas would be trained by the Nigeria Police Force.
Governor Godwin Obaseki who stated this while addressing participants of the 2018 Senior Executive Course 40, National Institutes for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, who were on a study tour to the state faulted the centralised security arrangement in the country.
Governor Obaseki said it does not make sense from a political and economic standpoint.
Obaseki said the country needs a strong federal police system and allow states as well as local government to have policing arrangements.
He noted that a central police system could be well equipped and funded so that it can demobilise any of the state or sub-national police systems that may want to cross the line.
According to him, “We cannot understand and articulate the issue of our security outside our economic and political contexts and I believe that should be the starting point.
“If we, as a country, do not begin to restructure particularly the economic arrangements and begin to invest a lot more in public growth for the benefit of the country, and if we are not able to begin to achieve a level of economic growth, security will continue to be a major challenge.”
“The youths will be trained by the Nigerian Police as we have reached an agreement with the hierarchy of the Force to provide the youths world-class community policing training to prepare them to discharge their tasks effectively and help fight crime in the society.”
“A minimum of 20 young men and women will be recruited from each ward where they reside. The state government would deploy these youths on intelligence gathering which will include supplying relevant authorities with needed information required in the fight against crime in the society,” he added.
Leader of the Senior Executive Course, Assistant Inspector General of Police, Muhammad Musa Katsina commended the governor for the progress made in restoring law and order as well as creating conducive environment for investors in the state.
Katsina noted that crime rate in the country requires the contribution of all, adding “in the past, issues bothering on crime was the business of everyone. Unresolved crimes damage the reputation of law enforcement agencies as well as threaten the country’s internal security framework.”
