Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt 

Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has called for collaboration with stakeholders in the South-south geo-political zone for greater peace and security in the region.

Governor Fubara stated this during the South-South Zonal Public Hearing on National Security by the Senate Ad Hoc Committee on National Security Summit, held in Port Harcourt Thursday.

He stressed that all hands must be on deck in shared responsibility of securing lives and property to ensure lasting peace and development across the region. 

Represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Benibo Anabraba, the governor emphasised that: “Security is not the business of government alone, but a shared responsibility and concern of every person.”

According to him, “As a government, we are not unaware of our constitutional responsibility to ensure the protection and safety of lives and property in the state, including the territorial integrity of Nigeria. 

“These objectives we have assiduously pursued with robust collaboration and partnership with the Federal Government and the various security agencies, in providing the necessary equipment such as operational vehicles, boats and even aircraft, accommodation and support, including the welfare of both serving personnel and the Nigerian Legionnaires.

“This summit could therefore, not have come at a better time, as it is today, in the face of security challenges in the region that drains our national revenue, damages our environment, and put lives and property at risk, and the immense efforts of the federal, state and local governments in combating these menaces to society.”

The governor stated that the gathering is a testament of the commitment and synergy towards a more secure, stable and prosperous future for the South-south region and Nigeria in general. 

“While we are happy to partner with the Senate Ad Hoc Committee on National Security Summit in convoking this South-South Public Hearing on National Security, we urge the stakeholders gathered here to see this occasion as a mechanism from the people to the policy-makers, Bottom-Up Approach, while giving special attention and recognition to our peculiar natural environment or topography as a coastal region that is the gateway to international waters of the Gulf of Guinea,” he said.

Governor Fubara assured the people that his administration will continue to partner security agencies to foster peace in the region.

“The government of Rivers State will continue to adopt proactive measures such as intelligence sharing, and best practices with security agencies and our brother states, complement security initiatives and stake engagement, the employment and empowerment of youths, and public participation, particularly at community levels in line with the theme of the summit, ‘The Way Forward in Tackling National Security Issues at the Local Level’,” he declared. 

The Senate Minority Leader and Chairman, South-South Security Summit, Senator Abba Moro, noted that the summit is a deliberate effort to diagnose, understand and collectively address the hydra-headed security challenges confronting the country.

He stated that the summit is a unique platform for frank deliberations and assessments geared towards procuring probable solutions that will mitigate the security challenges of the country. 

“The Senate as a responsive lawmaking institution, recognises that no security act can succeed without a clear understanding of local dynamics and peculiarities of security occurrences across the country.

“We are here today to listen to security experts, traditional rulers, community leaders, civil society organisations and those directly affected by the very threats that this summit seeks to address. 

“Be assured that the information we should gather from this summit would undoubtedly form the basis of our recommendations to the Senate, which will serve as guides to our legislative interventionist measures, budgetary provisions and policy reforms that will revamp national security landscape,” he added.

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