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Chanchaga Local Government Council, in collaboration with the Minna Emirate Council, has held an expanded security stakeholders meeting to curb the menace of youth restiveness in Minna metropolis and its environs.
The meeting, which was initiated by the council chairman of Chanchaga Local Government, Hon. Aminu Yakubu Ladan, was held at the Emir's Palace Minna last Saturday.
Declaring the meeting open, His Royal Highness, the Emir of Minna, Alhaji Umar Farouk Bahago, expressed worry over youth restiveness in Minna and its environs, especially during festive periods, which were supposed to be a joyful and memorable moment.
He revealed that the Governor of Niger State, Rt. Hon. Mohammed Umar Bago, was also worried about the situation and, since coming on board, had been doing his best to tackle youth restiveness around Minna and its environs.
The Emir observed that poor parental upbringing, which has affected our morals, was the root cause of the problem and urged parents whose children engage in such acts to correct the abnormal behaviours of their children or regret it one day.
He also observed that gone were the days when neighbours disciplined each other's children, but that this tradition has long faded away.
Speaking also, the Council Chairman, Hon. Aminu Ladan, said the meeting was convened by him with the approval of the Emir because of the resurgence of youth restiveness in Minna and its environs.
He said the governor, who was in faraway Saudi Arabia for lesser Hajj, was not happy with the ugly situation that has resurfaced in Minna and had given him the matching order to take decisive action against those causing the chaos.
The council chairman, who said enough is enough and it was not going to be business as usual, as anyone caught henceforth will not be spared, warned parents who were fond of hiding their children when they commit crimes to desist from such.
He also declared that since it has become a tradition that if arrests are made, some powerful individuals will go and secure the release of the culprit, henceforth anyone who kills another person will also be killed. From now on, we are not going to use tear gas or hot water on them, but bullets. One bullet is enough to send one to his permanent resting place since he doesn't want us to leave peacefully," the council chairman declared.
He recalled when Minna used to be the most peaceful city in the whole of Northern Nigeria, but that today Minna city has become the enemy of itself as the perpetrators of the act were within and not from outside.
Hon. Aminu Ladan disclosed that the primary responsibility of any government was the protection of the lives and properties of the citizens, that he had made a promise when he came into office to make Minna peaceful, and that he still upholds this promise, saying anyone who doesn't want peace in Minna will not see peace in his life either.
He disclosed that he and the governor had been doing a lot to engage the youth and give them a good life, adding that about 70 percent of his budget usually goes to youth and women's empowerment. "What else do they want when they are disturbing the peace of the people?"
The Council Chairman also informed the Emir and other stakeholders that, in view of the recent attacks carried out by the youths in Minna, they have initiated a foot patrol led by himself with men of the Nigeria police force, vigilante corps, and some voluntary security outfits,where they made some arrests, and that they will continue to do so until Minna is peaceful again.
The meeting had in attendance all divisional police officers (DPOs) under the Chanchaga Local Government, with the exception of the GRA and Kpakungu divisions, representatives of the Minna Area Commander, the DSS, the Vigilante Corps, voluntary security organisations, ward heads in the Emirate, as well as members of the Chanchaga legislative council.
The Niger State Government has signed a $144 million Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development to finance four priority projects in various socio-economic sectors in the state.
The MoU was signed at the ECOWAS Investment Forum held in Lome, the capital city of Togo.
The Commissioner for Finance, Lawal Adamu Maikano, and the Chairman, Niger Foods, Sammy Adigun, signed for the Niger State Government, while the Vice President of Operations, ECOWAS Bank of Development and Investment, Dr. Olagunju Olalekan, the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, George Agyekum Donkor, as well as the Vice President of Risks and Control, Dr. Mory Soumahoro, all signed for the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development.
According to the MoU, projects to be financed include the construction of the Madalla-Suleja-Maje dual carriage road for $30 million, the construction of the Madalla Green Economic Market for $11 million, and the conversion of the old Secretariat Minna to the School of Medical and Health Sciences for S40 million. Others are the construction of eight international trailer parks in Mokwa, Tafa, Lambatta, Bida, Makera, Dikko, Tegina, and Kontagora at a cost of $43 million.
The agreement, according to the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Niger State, Mal. Bologi Ibrahim, would not only complement the ongoing infrastructural transformation in the state but would also create new windows for investments and job opportunities for the teeming youth population.
The ECOWAS Bank of Investment and Development was established to promote the cooperation and economic development of West African countries. It currently comprises fifteen (15) member states, including Nigeria.
