Tag: advocates

The Chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), Mr. Dakuku Peterside, has condemned the killing of four students of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) in Aluu, Rivers State.

Dakuku, in a statement, said the killing showed that the country cannot continue to run away from state police.

He said: “Whatever the reason, the truth is that the Uniport 4 represented hope and the future, not just for their respective families and communities, but for the entire country. So for whatever reason, these are needless deaths that could have been avoided and this sordid act should be condemned by all men of goodwill.

“I understand Aluu and some neighbouring communities had been under siege for some time. In fact, the state of insecurity in the area had deteriorated so badly that the people had resorted to self-help.

“Consequently, they formed vigilance groups with absolute powers and the death of these boys is a direct consequence of that ill-advised move. Therefore, to all intent and purposes, Aluu was actually a disaster waiting to happen. But should this brand of jungle justice be visited on the Uniport 4 in the first instance?

“Again, are we such a depraved people? Where are the good men of Aluu? This is definitely not what I know of Aluu, a once peaceful neighbourhood. Did they just watch while evil was perpetrated or were they simply intimidated?

“Security is at the centre of this latest national calamity and we must not pretend about it.

“The police failed to rise up to the occasion, even though the crime under consideration lasted about two hours. This failure drew substantially from the police’s obsolete communication gadgets and their slow response.

These are issues we had raised severally, but no one listened.

“If what happened in Aluu could happen in Rivers, a model state in terms of security, then there is cause for alarm. This is a warning sign we cannot afford to ignore.

“Those opposed to state police for some reasons are beginning to see the need for further dialogue. The Aluu killings would not have happened, if there was state police.

“The arguments against state police usually dissolve in the face of logic. Police cannot be a platform for national integration and this must be emphasised. Around the world, there are not too many examples of successful policing in federal states.

“Antagonists of state police are also quick to cite the concentration of power in one single man (the governor), discriminatory tendencies, interstate rivalry and even jungle justice like the macabre dance in Aluu as its disadvantages.

“Strangely, the advantages of state police outweigh its disadvantages. The truth is that the federal police as constituted today lacks capacity and resources and is too bureaucratic. These explain why they are easily overwhelmed.

“I think some Nigerians are beginning to appreciate the fact that state police would be well-funded. There is also the advantage of capacity-building. There will be enough manpower and this will engender healthy rivalry.

“If we achieve the clamour for state police, a measure of frustration will leave our governors, who will then truly act as chief security officers.

Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole yesterday urged the Federal Government to make judicious use of the National Ecological Fund in the management and control of flooding across the country.

The governor spoke yesterday while hosting the Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Alhaji Sani Sidi, who was in the state to appraise the damage done by floods in Etsako Central, Etsako East and Esan Southeast local government areas.

He said the state government would collaborate with NEMA to provide a solution.

Oshiomhole said the floods, caused by the overflow of the River Niger, are getting worse.

He said: “We appear helpless and the Federal Government ought to do more than it has done. The situation calls for a more drastic response. The state government is doing all it can by providing relief materials, as well as deploying doctors and nurses to treat the victims.

“We need to act fast because this is a national calamity. There are long term implications, as farm lands have been destroyed and domestic animals killed.”

Sidi commiserated with the government and residents on their losses.

He said: “Disaster occurrences and the number of people affected by them have risen significantly in recent years as a result of the impact of climate change and increased human activities. Similarly, economic losses from disasters, both natural and man-made, have escalated.

“Nigeria is not immune to the negative impact of these developments. The wide-spread flooding, which occurred in 23 states of the federation in 2010, are a pointer to the growing intensity of climate change-related disasters.

“This phenomenon got more intense last year and has become very alarming this year, as all rivers in the country have overflowed their banks. Many communities and local governments from Lokoja, Kogi, through Etsako West in Edo State down to Biase in Cross River State are presently under water.

“As the rainy season peaks, we must prepare for more floods, because the weather has become unpredictable and extreme conditions, such as excessive rainfall, severe windstorm, heat wave and drought, have become more frequent with adverse effect on the economy, environment, agricultural production and food security.”