By Victor Akinkuolie, Ado Ekiti
|
In a bid to improve and strengthen the security architecture of the state, Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji has donated two Armoured Personnel Carriers, ten operational Vehicles and other security equipment and gadgets to the State Command of the Nigeria Police.
The gesture, according to the Governor is geared towards supporting the police to improve its operations and ensure a safer and more peaceful environment in the state.
Presenting the vehicles and equipment at the Fajuyi Pavilion in Ado Ekiti, Oyebanji said the vehicles were meant to assist the activities of the command and boost the morale of its officers and men, adding that the bedrock of good governance is peace and security without which no development is possible.
The Governor noted that the security challenges facing the nation were enormous and urged the State Command to be proactive and engage more in intelligence-gathering and community policing rather than allowing criminals to perpetrate their heinous crime before rising to the situation.
Oyebanji used the opportunity to commend men of the command for maintaining peaceful and safe atmosphere in the state with the assurance that his administration would continue to support all security outfits in the state to enable them function effectively and efficiently.
He said his administration would not only overhaul and rejig the security architecture of the state but will also do everything within its capacity to provide necessary logistics and all they needed to function effectively and ensure that criminals were not allowed safe abode in the state.
The Governor implored the police to make judicious and maximum use of the equipment and ensure that the vehicles are properly maintained. He also challenged them to work assiduously in developing capacity to combat kidnapping, burglary and other violent crimes that still occur in the state.
Oyebanji said a similar gesture will be extended to other security outfits in the state, stressing that the Friday presentation of vehicles was the first in the series of other plans to support and elevate operations of security agencies in the state.
Earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Brig. Gen. Ebenezer Ogundana (rtd.) commended the Governor for all his efforts geared towards enhancing and ensuring security of lives and properties in the state.
In his response shortly after receiving the vehicles and equipment, the Commissioner of Police in the State, Dare Ogundare said the equipment would allow the police respond effectively and promptly to distress calls by citizens to security situations.