Former governor of Anambra State and ex-Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, advised on the adoption of both kinetic and non-kinetic approaches by the government in tackling the menace.
In a statement released by his Media Office on Sunday, Ngige said there is the need for improvement in equipment and logistics to support security agents in their efforts to tackle insecurity.
Commenting on the perennial insecurity in the country, which recently assumed a very dangerous dimension in Anambra State, Ngige said the adoption of both kinetic and non-kinetic approaches by the government will no doubt help to stem the menace.
Ngige spoke to journalists at the weekend shortly after he was conferred with a Chieftaincy title of “Otiwaluzo N’Nnewi,” by the entire Nnewi community, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State, for his remarkable achievements in road construction during his 34-month short-lived tenure as governor.
Speaking on how to deal with insecurity, Ngige called for more funding for security at all levels, stressing that spending more money on equipment and logistics for security agencies, would get security under control, whether at the national or state level.
He said: “When I was the governor of Anambra State, I adopted kinetic and non-kinetic approach to enhance security. I mobilised the Nigerian Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) with equipment, including communication gadgets, because that time you could hardly contact Onitsha or Ihiala from Awka. There was no communication then.
“Regarding non-kinetic approach, we reached out to all the bad boys and offered jobs to those who wanted to work. We paid them N30, 000 monthly that time. That N30, 000 is worth about N2 million now. Those that refused to turn a new leaf were taken out kinetically.
“So, what I am saying is that we have to provide employment to the young men. We equip them with skills. A lot of them do not have hope about the future and that is why the bad people find them easy to recruit.
“The government should go into competition with the non-state actors in recruiting these boys. If you recruit them and pay them well, you have tamed kidnapping.”
The entire Nnewi community, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State, at the weekend conferred Ngige with a High Chieftaincy title, in recognition of his remarkable achievements in road construction during his 34-month short-lived tenure as governor.
Ngige who also served as the Minister of Labour and Employment from November 2015 to May 2023, was conferred with the title of “Otiwaluzo N’Nnewi,” meaning ‘Trailblazer in Road Construction’.
The conferment was performed by revered Nnewi Monarch, Igwe Kenneth Onyeneke Orizu III, with the support of members of his cabinet, during the 2024 Ofala cultural festival at his palace.
Ngige recalled that Igwe Orizu III offered him the title way back in 2007, but he did not take it because of his desire to seek for another opportunity to serve his people in government.
Reminiscing further, the former governor said he was elected into the 7th Senate where he represented Anambra Central from 2011 to 2015 and thereafter, accepted an appointment as the Minister of Labour and Employment in November 2015, holding the office for eight years uninterrupted until May 29, 2023.
Ngige said: “I waited until I finished active public service as a Minister before taking this title. But the good thing is that my name has been in the nominal roll since 2007. So, I am an old Ichie (High Chief).
“Ichie Otiwaluzo N’Nnewi’ connotes that this man is a Trailblazer in Road Construction. I built so many roads in Nnewi. In fact, starting from Adazi, coming down here to Nnewi was motorable when I was governor.
“We constructed from Nnewi to Ihembosi, Ozubulu, and then, to Okija. Before my administration, that road was impassable. There was even a gulley on the road, which we reclaimed and built a bridge to connect the federal highway from Onitsha to Ihiala.
“At that point in time, we encountered the Mmili Ele in Nnewi, which was a perennial sore point for road builders. If you build it, after six months, erosion wipes everything away. We now did erosion control at Mmili Ele, with a big hanging bridge that passed there, before we built a road on top of it. It is something remarkable.”
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