The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has decried what it described as the rising incidents of kidnapping, killing, and other violent crimes in Bayelsa State.
The council said that it was disturbing that cases of abductions and other violent crimes were on the rise in the state despite the huge support given to the security agencies by Governor Douye Diri’s administration.
Speaking during a press conference in Yenegoa, the Bayelsa State capital on Thursday, the national spokesman for the IYC, Ebilade Ekerefe, recalled that the state government had in December 2021 strengthened ‘Operation Doo Akpo’ with 50 brand new operational vehicles, 40 motorbikes, and other security gadgets to fight crime and criminality in the state.
He noted that the administration had earlier in June 2021 donated 14 operational vehicles to the security agencies to support the improvement of the security situation in the state.
Ekerefe said although the security organisations had been trying their best to secure the state, they were not doing enough to protect lives and property.
According to him, the heightened challenge of insecurity was also traceable to the porous borders of the state which, he said, were not adequately secured against the perpetrators of crimes.
“As Ijaw Youth Council, we find it difficult to believe that the security agencies are not doing their job effectively. People come here (Bayelsa) and kidnap people with impunity. Nobody has been arrested or made to pay for the crimes they have committed. So, the criminals are emboldened to perpetrate these crimes.
“The Bayelsa State Governor as a matter of policy has governed the state in a way that accommodates every shades of opinion and political interests, including encouraging the private sector for businesses to thrive in the state.
“Today, it is quite unfortunate that despite the logistics support being provided by the governor and government of Bayelsa State, those who are saddled with the responsibility of policing our communities and environment are not taking their job seriously.
“This is not to say that there are no security agents that are doing their best, but we believe that their best is not good enough. The question we are asking is, despite the huge resources approved for security agencies in the state by the governor of the state, available evidence suggests that the morale of the rank and file is very low,” he stated.
The council called on the state government to convene a security summit of all relevant stakeholders, to address the security problems, adding that the security of lives and property could not be left to the government and security agencies alone.
