Mr. Amobi Ogar, a member of the house of representative representing Isuikwuato and Umunneochi Local Government Areas of Abia State in southeast Nigeria, has urged the relevant security agencies to deal with the kidnapping activities in the state.
Mr. Ogar who made the call when speaking to the House Press Corps about a motion he made on the subject, said that insecurity is a major problem in the southeast that needs the Federal government’s urgent attention.
He said, “Kidnapping has become akara business. To the extent that they now go into peoples homes inside villages to carry them. On the express those ones will carry you and demands for millions of naira. My people are passing through a lot.”
He noted that the primary essence of governance was to protect the people and property.
“If the people are not protected, what’s the essence of government? I am calling upon the president, the Chief of Army Staff, the IG and other relevant security agencies to come to our aid. So that my can live in peace. As I’m talking to you, a lot of villagers have fled their homes. Even our mothers do not go to farms anymore.”
The lawmaker acknowledged the state government’s efforts to reduce crime and says that vigilante organizations are being planned as a temporary solution to the problem.
Prior to this, Mr. Ogar had made a motion regarding “The Need To Curb The Incessant Attacks By Kidnappers, Assassins, Bandits And Other Criminal Elements In Isuikwuato And Umunneochi Local Government Areas Of Abia State.”
The motion said, “The House: Notes that attacks by kidnappers, assassins, bandits, and perpetrators of various heinous crimes have persisted for more than half a decade in Isuikwuato and Umunneochi Local Government Areas of Abia State.”
At the plenary, He expressed worry that the incessant attacks on the communities within Isuikwuato and Umunneochi Local Government Areas are beginning to force residents to flee their homes and abandon their farmlands and other means of production and livelihood
He therefore, urged the Chief of Army Staff, Inspector General of Police and Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defnce Corps to set up a joint patrol team to comb farmland and forests to root out kidnappers, bandits and all criminal elements in all parts of Isuikwuato and Umunneochi Local Government Areas of Abia State.