Reps seek return of roadblocks in South East over insecurity
By Anthony Musa
Worried by the increasing activities of non-state actors in fueling the growing insecurity in the country, the House of Representatives has renewed its call on the government to take drastic action in curtailing the security challenges in the country.
Adopting a motion of urgent public importance on the need to take urgent steps to address the increasing insecurity in Anambra state by Rep Chris Azubugu, the House asked the National Security Adviser (NSA), Inspector General Police, Director General State Security, Army, Navy, and other security agencies to form a joint task force to restore security in Anambra State especially Anambra South bordering Imo State.
Rep Azubogu said it was dangerous to allow non-state actors to continue to take control of the security situation in Anambra state in particular and the South East in general, killing and maiming innocent persons in the state.
He said many had thought that the security situation in the state would be better after the last governorship election, adding that instead of improving, the situation has become worse while many people can no longer stay in their homes.
He appealed to the government to help restore normalcy to the state while asking the House of Reps to intervene and ensure that peace returned to the state.
Rep Linda Ikpeazu said one of the responsibilities of the government is to protect the lives of the people, adding that this is currently lacking in Anambra state, she added that the current situation in the state has made the ordinary people unsafe to go about their normal business.
She also said there is a lack of commitment to stem the tide of insecurity in the state, a situation that has led to the loss of innocent lives in the state and across the south east, alleging that the security agencies are aware of what is going on, but have refused to act.
She said “people cannot be dying every day. The relevant authority knows what they should do. Anambra is still part of Nigeria and should be treated as such.
Rep Chinedu Obidigwe said the Anambra state governor called him to request that the House should reverse the order given to the police to remove checkpoints from the roads, as it was not working for the good of the state.
He went on to say people are now afraid to visit Anambra as a result of the activities of non-state actors who have posed a grave danger to the people of the state who are now afraid to visit the state.
He also said urgent action needed to be taken to address the situation as many lives are being lost daily, saying “the Federal Government should help us in the South East because we cannot afford to allow this to continue. Nowhere is safe today.”
Deputy Chief Whip of the House, Rep Nkiruka Onyejeocha said the security situation is not restricted to Anambra state alone as nobody dares to go out on Mondays throughout the South East as a result of the activities of non-state actors who mount roadblocks on the highway, collecting tax and other levies from road users.
Rep Ahmed Jaha said a situation where non-state actors are allowed to mount roadblocks collecting taxes and levies amount to having a parallel government and signs of a failed state.
He recalled that a similar situation occurred when members of the Boko Haram insurgents started mounting roadblocks in Borno state and collecting tax with nothing done to stop them until the situation got out of hand and escalated to other parts of the north.
He said the government needs to take serious measures to stop these illegal roadblocks across the country, saying “we are 360 members in the House representing our people. We don’t know where this will shift to next”.
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