The Senator representing Edo Central Senatorial District of Edo State, Senator Joseph Ikpea, has commended Governor Monday Okpebholo for the proactive steps taken to prevent the mass abduction of students in the state.
Okpebholo had on Tuesday instructed the temporary closure of three schools, Ososo Grammar School, Ososo Comprehensive High School and Makeke Secondary School, in Akoko Edo in Edo North following an alert raised by the Department of State Security on the plan by bandits to attack some schools in the state.
Ikpea said that by closing some of the schools prone to the threat, Governor Okpebholo had shown leadership and placed importance on the wellbeing of the people.
The senator, in a statement on Thursday made available to journalists in Benin City, said with the insecurity the nation, it was ideal that the governor did not treat the security alert raised by the top security agency with levity.
The statement read, “I want to commend His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo, the Executive Governor of our dear state, Edo, for the prompt decision he took by closing down three secondary schools in the Akoko Edo Area of the state following the security alert raised by the Department of State Security that some undesirable elements in our society were planning to attack some schools in Edo North Senatorial District with a view to kidnapping our children.
“The decision by Governor Okpebholo to act swiftly when he got the information goes to show his good and uncommon leadership and understanding of the principle of governance which stipulates that the government must seek the wellbeing of the people at all times.
“There is no doubt the decision to close the school at this period comes with its pain given that students across the nation are writing one national or sub-continental examination, it is just ideal that the governor closed the schools instead of waiting for the evil act to be perpetrated.”
Ikpea also called on Nigerians, particularly his Edo Central Senatorial District constituents, to be vigilant and report any strange activity in their areas to security agencies and concerned authorities.
“It is pertinent at this juncture to call on Nigerians to be more vigilant. The issue of security, given the development in our dear nation today, has gone beyond it being the exclusive preserve of the government. All citizens must be involved and take the matter as part of their civic responsibilities to the Nigerian State.
“I want to appeal to the people of Edo Central not to consider the alert as raised by the Department of State Security as the problem of Edo North Senatorial District because the security alert did not mention Edo Central.
“It is obvious that the undesirable elements responsible for this dastardly act of kidnapping don’t discriminate against tribe and region. Therefore, our people must be conscious of their environment, study all strange faces that come into their neighbourhood and take the bold step by reporting any strange activity around them to security agents and the authorities concerned. We should not wait till it happens before we act,” he noted.
While praising the Department of State Security and other security agencies in the state for their collaboration with Okpebholo-led administration for making Edo State safe, he assured that he would continue to support any initiative by the Edo State Government to rid the state of all undesirable elements.
It would be recalled that in a leaked memo from the Edo State Command of Department of State Services, addressed to the State Commandant of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, the intelligence agency said it had uncovered a plan to abduct students in public schools in Edo North Senatorial District.
The document also claimed that a communication between two suspects where the plot was being planned was intercepted and that an individual had been arrested who was found in one of the public schools in the area apparently on a surveillance mission.
Read the full article here
