Alaming law abiding citizens will enhance community security, reduce crime rate in Nigeria– OPCI President
KEHINDE AKINPELU,ILORIN
The President of Oodua Progressive Care Initiative (OPCI), Dr Maruff Olarewaju, has disclosed that alaming law abiding citizens will enhance community security and reduced crime rate in Nigeria.
Olarewaju made the call on Tuesday in Ilorin while addressing newsmen on security challenges in Nigeria.
According to him, legalizing firearm ownership for citizens would help tackle the insecurity situation in the country.
The OPCI President also stressed that legalisation of firearm ownership for citizens would empower communities to take charge of their security, thereby reducing the vulnerability exploited by armed groups.
” We need a radical shift in our approach to security. Legalization of firearm ownership for every citizen is the way out.
” By granting citizens the right to bear arms, we can potentially create a deterrent effect against potential aggressors.
” Empowered citizens can be a crucial component to national security framework. It is evident that a rethink of our security paradigm is long overdue.
”Communities in Plateau, Kwara, Niger, and Borno states have been ravaged by insecurity, forcing residents to abandon their home. We need to change tactics in security approach,” he said.
According to him, alaming law abiding citizens will enhance community security and reduce the incidence of crime.
The president also said legalizing firearm ownership for citizens will also provide citizens with a means of self-defence against armed aggressors.
He also stressed that arming the citizens will potentially reduce the high rate of banditry and kidnapping operations in various parts of the country.
Olarewaju described the current state of affairs as alarming, adding that despite the significant allocation of resources to security, the menace of banditry, kidnapping, and armed robbery continues to escalate.
He echoed that the constitutional prohibition on firearm ownership by citizens appears to be ineffective in preventing the proliferation of illicit arms.
The OPCI president, however, called on President Bola Tinubu and other government stakeholders to engage in national dialogue on the way forward to tackle security menace rocking the country.
End.
