BY PATRICK MGBODO
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, has called for a decentralisation of Nigeria’s security architecture in the fight against insecurity.
Obi made the call yesterday on the heels of an alleged admission by the Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, that he is incapacitated in dealing with bandits, even when he knows their hideouts.
According to Obi, ‘’I read with deep concern the lamentation of Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State, who openly admitted that he knows the exact locations of bandit leaders but is incapacitated to act because he lacks control over security agencies. This starkly reflects the systemic weakness of our security architecture.
‘’What kind of country are we running where a federating unit lacks the coordination and support of the centre in the most critical role of governance – the protection of life and property? When the Chief Security Officer of a state is reduced to a mere spectator, citizens are left at the mercy of criminals.
‘’I have repeatedly called for a restructuring of our security framework to make it more responsive, decentralised, and effective. The Federal Government must, as a matter of urgency, give Governor Dauda and other governors across the federation all the support they need to secure their states and safeguard the lives of Nigerians’’ Obi said.
