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Ebonyi State governor David Umahi and the main opposition party in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have disagreed on the worsening insecurity in the state and the allocation of security agents to candidates of political parties, their directors-general, and party officials.
Governor Umahi who frowned at the number of police and DSS operatives paraded by the governorship candidate of the opposition party in the state urged the Police Service Commission (PSC), the commissioner of police Garba Aliyu and the state director of the Department of State Services (DSS) to withdraw the men without further delay.
Umahi, who is the chairman South East Governors Forum accused the opposition party of being behind the high level of insecurity in Ebonyi, adding that they clothe non-security personnel with security uniforms and go around the state shooting indiscriminately and intimidating the people.
‘I have told the CP that am not pleased with the number of policemen the opposition party is parading and I want him to answer to me. We have about 400 active police officers in the state and one person can’t be having 10 policemen attached to him alone.
‘If nothing is done, I will confront their convoy. Even those who are not contesting election are given DSS. Someone who is not contesting election in the level of governor should not be given DSS, I will not accept it as the chief security officer of the state.
‘We need to deploy this security officer to protect our people. If you give this number of policemen to these people who are the source of insecurities in the state, then what number is now left to guard the people. I will not accept it any longer.’
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‘I don’t want to see anybody that is not a former governor, deputy governor or one contesting for governor parading DSS and it shouldn’t be more than one or two.
‘We must have a limited number, there is no way someone contesting for governor will parade more policemen than the deputy governor, than the speaker, we will not allow it.
‘Their activities are the source of insecurities in the state. We must curtail their activities. Your men cannot be part of those defiling the law by moving with people who are not permitted to move with siren.
‘No police or DSS or army should accompany anybody that is using siren that is not supposed to use siren,’ he said.
Governor Umahi urged the state commissioner of police to ensure that police allocation comes from the state adding that by so doing ‘we will know their faces and they must obey the security chiefs in the state.’
Reacting to Umahi’s comment, the deputy director, media and publicity, PDP Campaign Council, Mr. Moses Idika said that the comments of Governor Umahi over the lawful security details attached to candidates of opposition political parties in Ebonyi State simply shows his desperation to engender violence in the State.
‘Gov Umahi illegally formed a militia group and armed them to harass perceived political opponents in the state, I think the CP should start with disarming Ebubeagu before talking about security operatives on lawful duty.
‘His threat to disarm federal security operatives in Ebonyi State, is laughable. We all know he grandstands all the time just to show power.
‘But we advise him to go about his stillbirth Senate ambition campaigns peacefully and allow Ebonyi people to decide who to vote. Governor Umahi is simply afraid that himself and his party will lose.
‘He is distributing vehicles to security agencies as bribe believing that they will help him compromise the elections, but President Muhammadu Buhari has already given clear orders both to the security agencies and INEC to conduct and supervise credible election process,’ he said.
