ENDSARS Commemorative Guest Article – On Insecurity in Abia/South East, Way Forward: Outcome of a Solution Discourse on Insecurity Presented by the Progressive Abia Youths Association.

In this ENDSARS Commemorative Guest article, Mr. Daberechi, the President General of the Progressive Abia Youth Association shares the insights of his association on the main concern of the ENDSARS protest, namely police brutality, and their views on how this concern can be addressed.

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It is no news that political instability, citizen alienation and violence define the Abia/South East crime scene. Out of the 135,000 reported crime cases and over 75,000 deaths recorded since 2011, firearms contributed to over 95% of the deaths and the ease of smuggling arms into the country has not helped the situation. Over 70% of the actors in the crime scene are youths who were abandoned, used by politicians, depressed or frustrated by the ills in the society.

In lieu of our vision to build a critical mass of Abia Youths that will change the economic fortune of Abia State; in tandem with the long term need of arresting insecurity in Abia State, South East and Nigeria, having identified security as a critical prerequisite for economic development, the
Progressive Abia Youths Association after a thorough discourse on insecurity tenders the following:

1. We believe that the police has a great role to play in stabilizing the security of our
   State/Nation and consequently applaud good police officers who have continued to handle
   their responsibilities with professionalism.
2. We observed that the many cases of police brutality and poor response on the part of men in
   the uniform created a vacuum between the police and citizens, thus fuelling agitations and
   consequent attacks on police personnel. To this end we advocate that cases of abuse and
   molestation on the part of the police officers be taken seriously and erring officers dealt with
   according to the law, to restore confidence and dignity of service.
3. A lot needs to be done on orientation and welfare of police officers. We feel embarrassed by
   the constant practice of police men whom we see as models in the society collecting money
   from motorists at checkpoints.
4. As a civil society group, we believe in the supremacy of dialogue and constant follow up. To
   this effect, we solicit for a YOUTH-POLICE dialogue(quarterly) that seeks to inform the
   youths on issues around insecurity and form a synergy that will guarantee results and engage the youths who are major stakeholders in our security architecture.
5. Localize and Digitalize: The world is a global village and our generation is at the center
   of digitalization. We believe that the police needs a formation that digitalizes local
   intelligence and information dissemination through social media where most young
   people live. Introduce digital surveillance of our borders and security hotspots.
6. DECLARE FIREARMS AMNESTY to reduce the number of guns in the streets. As
   consequence to the ENDSARS protest and the attacks that ensued, we observed that
   there are a lot of arms in circulation. We believe that a firearms amnesty will help
   reduce the firearms in circulation and boost security as a result.
7. A strong partnership should be initiated between the Police and the community
   youth formations to create a synergy that works. It is only with collective efforts
   and inclusion that we will win the war against crime.

Ekejiuba Kingsley Daberechi
President General