Security: We stand for community policing in Nasarawa – Gov. Sule

Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa state says the state has adopted community policing strategies in tackling its security challenges.

Sule, who on Thursday after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Presidential Villa, said there were no plans for regional policing between the state and its neighbours.

He said he was in the Presidential Villa to brief the president on the security situation in the state and to thank him for approving the establishment of Police Mobile Force Training School in the state.

“The reason why I and my big brother, Gov. Samuel Ortom of Benue State, met recently was to look at the security challenges that we have at the border; particularly between the Tivs and the Alago nation and the rest of the people of Nasarawa.

“The good understanding that we have extended to the problem between the herders also and the anti-open grazing law they have in Benue which we have discussed in full details.

“We have an excellent understanding because at the meeting, we had representatives of Alago and representatives of the Tivs; the representatives of the Miyetti Allah, the Fulanis who were there and everyone actually embraced the outcome of the meeting.

“Coming specifically to the issue of having a regional police, no, we strongly believe in Nasarawa that we have to start with community policing which we already have.

“We do have the community policing that which are empowering and hoping that down the line, it may go into state police, but for now we are looking at it at the community level.

“Maybe it will go to the local government level; village level and the rest of that; and those are the kind of people that we have; so far, so good for us.’’

He said that the security situation in Nasarawa had improved as kidnapping, banditry and armed robbery, among others had reduced significantly.

Sule expressed gratitude to the president for approving the siting of the Mobile Training School at the `Many Have Gone’ hills where the state had its greatest problem.

He said that the school would improve security and development in the area.

“Today the Police Mobile Force is establishing a training school there and the training school is going to bring a lot of development to the area.

“It is actually going to be able to stop most of the kidnappings around that particular spot and most of the problem that we have continued to see at that particular spot.

“So, that is something not only good for Nasarawa but for the entire country; that is the main route that people from Benue, Taraba, Cross River, Enugu and the rest of them follow to come to Abuja.

“So, for the establishment of such an institution there, we have to be very grateful to the president for approving the sitting of that school.

“As I passed there this morning, work has already started; we are very grateful to the Inspector-General of Police and the president,’’ he said.

He said his government was doing a lot in terms of infrastructure development in order to attract industries.

On agriculture, he said the state had made big strides as Azman and Dangote firms had acquired huge hectares of land for rice and sugarcane production.

The governor said that oil exploration in the state was at the initial stage but expressed optimism that commercial quantities of oil would be discovered at Keana Local Government Area of the State.