A non-governmental organisation known as Idah Club 6575 in Idah Local Government Area of Kogi State has called on the police and other security agencies to mop up arms and ammunition in the hands of unauthorized persons across the state.
The group said the call had become necessary to stem the rising tide of crime and criminality as fallout of the activities of political thugs in the recent general election in the state.
The club stated this in a letter addressed to the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, The letter, which was signed by the president of the club, Samuel Ogali, and director of Publicity and Strategy, Jibrin Sam, urged the police commissioner, Hameed Busari, to do all within the ambit of the law to ensure the illicit arms were retrieved from the youths.
“If these youths are not dispossessed of these arms, the tendency to resort to criminal activities such as armed robbery, kidnapping and cultism is high.
“Our prayer is for you to use your good office to nip this ugly trend in the bud in order to ensure peace and security for our people at home as well as to provide an enabling environment for our people in Diaspora to come home and contribute their quota to the development of our society,” the statement added.
It explained that their major objective was to promote the welfare and the wellbeing of their members and especially to curtail the spate of criminal activities in Idah and its environs.
While stressing the importance of the group to the uplift of the community, said it has lined up activities for the overall development of the state.
The club acknowledged the effort of the state government and security agencies in tackling the menace of kidnapping and cultism in recent time even as the clearing of the forest 10 meters from both flanks of the road had curtailed activities of men of the underworld on state roads.
According to the statement, “Despite the gesture of the state government in providing logistics support to various security agencies and the reciprocal effort of the various agencies, kidnappers are again on the prowl along Idah Ajegwu Road and other highways within the state.”