Otti Restates Commitment to Fighting Insecurity with Job Creation

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo
in Umuahia

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has restated his commitment to use job creation and economic empowerment as non-kinetic weapon to fight insecurity in the state.
He stated this Thursday night during the May edition of his monthly media interaction tagged ‘Governor Alex Otti Speaks to Abians’ held at Government House, Umuahia.
Otti noted that creation of job opportunities and poverty reduction remain potent weapons in the war against various kinds of criminalities and general insecurity.
“Once people have something to do, they become unavailable for criminalities,” he said.
The governor said that while his administration would in the meantime maintain the embargo on recruitment into the state’s oversaturated civil service, it would continue to create job opportunities outside the public sector.
To this end, he announced that his government has entered into a partnership with the Nasarawa State-based CSS Farms to train Abia youths on integrated farming techniques.

He said 100 youths selected for the first batch of the programme have already commenced training after which they would be empowered to make their living and even become employers in the agribusiness.
Otti said that as each set of trainees graduate another set would be selected to go in and get their own training, adding that the programme would continue in phases until the desired goal was attained.

“In a small time, the beneficiaries will become millionaires instead of loitering around doing nothing,” he said.
He also stated that his government was strengthening cooperatives as channel to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with the sum of N1 billion disbursed for that purpose.

Meanwhile, the students of Course 21 of 2024, Defence Intelligence College (DIC) Abuja have commended a Governor Otti for his “force multiplier strategy” to checkmate insecurity.
The students, who visited Otti at his Nvosi country home in the course of their five-day study tour of Abia, said that they were impressed by the peaceful environment existing in the state.

Led by the Director of Studies, Mr. Jonathan Nyam, who represented the Commandant of the Defence Intelligence College, Rear Admiral J.A. Nwagwu, the students observed with delight the strong partnership between the governor and heads of security agencies in Abia.

According to the DIC students, the decision of Abia governor to include in the State Executive Council heads of security agencies and traditional rulers has immensely contributed to the prevailing peace and security in Abia.

“We have also made some observations, and part of it, the first one that we noticed from our interaction with so many (security) organisations that we have visited, is that you take security very seriously.

“They equally confessed that you treat them equally, unlike some states where they have the big five and others. The big five sit in the Security Council while others will report to the Secretary (to the State Government). But here, it is not like that, all of them are treated equally,” Nyam said.

He informed the governor that the study tour of Course 21 of 2024 with the theme ‘Curbing Kidnapping for Ransom in Nigeria’ comprised 47 students divided into two groups with a group of 23 students in Abia while the rest went to Enugu.

Otti in his response thanked the students for their honest appreciation of the security situation in Abia, and reiterated his belief  that development won’t happen in the absence of security hence the need for collective efforts.

“We are all working collectively to secure the state. We clearly understand that everything succeeds and fails on the altar of security.

“If security fails, everything else fails, and, for us, in hurry to develop our state, our state cannot see development if the place is not secured. Investors cannot look our way,” the governor said.