The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, on Monday, decried the nation’s worsening insecurity as bandits and terrorists continue to wreak havoc in parts of the country.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Obi, a former Anambra State Governor, backed up calls for the creation of state police.
He said all 36 states should be responsible for the security of their residents within their domain.
“This security situation has become a complete worrisome situation for everybody concerned. I feel the Federal Government should do more,” he said.
“If I have the opportunity, every state will be responsible for their own security. I will make sure that the governors are given the powers to secure their states. Even if we have federal police, they will be responsible and report to the governor.
For me, I have said it repeatedly that if I have the opportunity, we will deal with the situation head-on. There are so many things that we want to put in place in order to ensure that we secure the country.”
The LP candidate insisted that state governors should have every security apparatus to protect lives and properties within their domain.
Stating that security is top on his agenda, Obi explained that he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of seeking technic assistance from advanced countries to help fix Nigeria’s security challenges.
As part of his plans, Obi said if elected as President next year, he will pull millions of Nigerians out of poverty.
According to him, empowering the masses is the means of solving the security challenges as people will not indulge in criminal activities.
He also decried the continued strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), asking the government to invest in the nation’s education sector.
While lamenting the prolonged absence of Nigerian tertiary students from the classroom since February 14, Obi criticised the Federal Government for failing to honour the 2009 agreements reached with the striking lecturers.
He also called for the review of Professors, saying it doesn’t make sense for councilors to earn more than university lecturers.