Governor Peter Obi

By Christopher Isiguzo

Dismayed by the increasing spate of insecurity in the south east occasioned by the activities of kidnappers, armed robbers among other criminalities, Governors of the five states of the zone rose from a closed door meeting in Enugu yesterday, with a resolve to set up common security operation for the area.

After a three-hour closed door meeting of the joint committee of the security councils of the five states of Abia, Anambra, Imo, Ebonyi and Enugu which took place at the Government House, Enugu, the governors expressed worry that different forms of crimes and criminalities had remained on the increase in the zone, vowing to tackle the situation with all amount of seriousness.

Governor of Anambra State and chairman of the South-east Governors’ Forum, Mr. Peter Obi, made the disclosure while briefing journalists at the end of their meeting, which had in attendance all the governors of the states except Ebonyi Governor, Chief Martin Elechi, who sent his deputy, Chief Dave Umahi.

The meeting also attracted deputy governors of all the states, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major General Olayinka Oshinowo; the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 9, Mr. Olusegun Solomon; Commissioners of Police in the zone, head of Immigration and Custom Services as well as other heads of other security parastatals in the zone.

Obi said the governors had set up a committee headed by Oshinowo with a two-week mandate to come up with a plan on how to handle security issues under the common security operation in the South-east.