INSECURITY: Northern govs set up committee to engage local vigilantes, hunters 

As part of efforts to stem the rising spate of insecurity in Northern Nigeria, the Northern Governors Forum (NGF) has set up a committee to engage local vigilantes, hunters and community groups on intelligence gathering, rapid response and sustained surveillance in the region.

This was made known in Jos, the Plateau State capital, on Friday by Makut Macham, the spokesman to the Chairman of the NGF and Plateau Governor, Simon Lalong.

According to the statement, the move was part of the resolutions of the Northern Governors during a teleconference meeting held on Thursday.

It stated that the arrangement will see the committee consult with traditional, religious and community leaders in the North, to strengthen their involvement in tackling security challenges.

The Forum sympathised with victims of various attacks and other forms of criminality in the region and also appealed to groups affected for calm.

The NGF also urged the Federal Government to closely look into the ECOWAS protocol on the free movement of persons, facilitating cross-border movement of herders from other countries into Nigeria.

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“The state governments and the federal government are working together to forestall reoccurrence,’’ Lalong stated.

This came after former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to do more than just question the capabilities of the service chiefs to address insecurity issues in Nigeria.

Following the worsening insecurity in Nigeria, President Buhari on Thursday met with the service chiefs.

During the meeting the president was said to have told them that their best in tackling insecurity in the country was not enough, and that their excuses were no longer acceptable.

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