Senator Ike Ekweremadu says Nigeria’s security needs cannot be met by the creation of state security outfits as leaders of various regions have gone on to establish.
The Former Deputy Senate President spoke on a monitored Channels Television programme on Friday. According to him, the security agencies being created outside the confines of the constitution will only lead to a state of anarchy.
In Ekweremadu’s view, these security groups such as Amotekun in the Southwest and Ebube Agu in the Southeast were established in anxiety, and as such, they will not stand the test of time.
“You see these are just panic measures, it is not enduring; and at worst it’s going to be a call to anarchy,” the lawmaker opined.
According to him, “the solution to our security challenges in Nigeria is to have a constitutional provision for a decentralized policing”.
While highlighting the need to have subnational police, the statesman explained that there needs to be a law that not only establishes the regional/area police system but also makes provisions for how the establishment will be regulated.
He was of the opinion that though security outfits like Amotekun and Ebube Agu may have their internal regulations, this will not be enough.
Ekweremadu warned that without a constitutional backing, clashes will continue to abound, adding that only proper legislation can see such organizations become effective.
The senator also spoke concerning the case against Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
He proposed a political solution to ensure the release of the detained leader, saying it could be achieved as the South-East Caucus in the National Assembly moves to intervene in the matter.
“In the past, we have done similar things. What we want to see is to make sure that the Federal Government understands the feeling of our people.”
“It is not easy to predict right now, but what we want to see is to reduce tension in the South-East,” the lawmaker said on Friday in response to a question about the motive of the caucus to intervene in the matter.
The lawmaker recalled when the leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Ralph Uwazuruike, was arrested during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He explained that during the administration of former President Musa Yar’Adua, he visited the late leader, alongside some senators, who invited the then minister of justice – a political development that led to Uwazuruike’s release.
“When Uwazuruike was detained by Obasanjo, there was tension until Yar’Adua came… eventually, we ended up in a political solution and Uwaruzuike was released.
The same thing with Nnamdi Kanu, when he was detained, I also led a delegation to meet the President.
“We expect that just as we had some results in the past, maybe we should come out with something that should be acceptable by all the parties,” Ekweremadu added.
