Amotekun- South-West Governors Deserve Kudos – Baraje

Chuks Ekpeneru

A former Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje has stated that  the launching of Amotekun by the south-west governors deserve commendation instead of bashing.

According to him, the aim is to complement the existing effort in tackling insecurity.

 Baraje further stressed that the new outfit is never a parallel security organisation which is out to take over the responsibilities of the police as expressed by some people and groups.

 He commended the Inspector General of Police, (IGP) for his understanding on the matter.

He said, “The Nigerian police is saddled with the purview of providing public security. I have never heard the Inspector General of Police condemning Amotekun .That is an educated, honest and dedicated police officer different from what we had in the immediate past.

“Government should sit down with the organizers of Amotekun and dialogue with the Governors from the affected states, instead of coming out and condemning them.

“The issue of Amotekun and the like has been existing in other regions of the country anyway. I am not a Nigerian that would be partial because I belong to one section of the country, what is good for the goose is good for the gander ,

“So if other parts of the nation have been operating such out fit successfully why not in the Southwest”

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He cited the case of Kwara where vigilante groups have been existing to complement the effort of the police and it has never usurp the role of the police.

Baraje therefore, urged the federal government to see the new organisation as working to assist the police in effort to tackle the country’s insecurity challenges.   

 “In Kwara state, for example, we have vigilantes. Many individuals, groups and organisations resolved to hiring services of vigilante security out fits in many occasions and in communities in Kwara state.

“They have been successfully and peacefully complementing police efforts in the state. Why haven’t the government blacklisted vigilantes? 

“We have been hearing the activities of the Joint Task Force (JTF) in the troubled North Eastern part of Nigeria .Why didn’t government say it is illegal? To me as far as I am concerned, the Amotekun is a welcome idea and an idea coming from leaders that have the concern of their people at heart.

“ I think the government at the center should sit down and dialogue with them and resolve the grey areas and let Amotekun function to complement the police effort.”

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