Nigeria’s 36 state governors must bear more responsibility than President Muhammadu Buhari for the current state of security in the country.
This is according to former Bauchi State Governor, Isa Yuguda, who stated this on Newsnight, a pre-recorded programme that airs on Channels Television.
Yuguda, also ex-Minister of Aviation is of the view that the argument that state governors do not control security agencies within their states does not hold water.
He charged governors to be far more proactive than they have been in tackling threats to the peace and safety of lives and property.
“From my own experience, the primary responsibility when taking the oath of office is about the protection of lives and properties,” he said.
“For those that have the problems starting in their place, it is their own responsibility. The President will not approve any Certificate of Occupancy for you to build a house in any state of the federation, it is the governors that do.
“If the governor approves the C of O of your house, you don’t expect Buhari to build a fence for your hose or provide security for you.
“If a government will dedicate the entire resources and budget on security to ensure that everybody sleeps in his house and you don’t have money to build roads, go to the President and say ‘I have secured my state, everybody sleeps with his eyes closed and business is going on. I don’t have any money, will you please support me with N20, N30 billion so that I can build roads? The President will do that.”
According to him, governors have made a covenant with the people of their states to secure them and their properties.
He, therefore, asked the state governors to be alive to their responsibilities and the Chief Security Officers, rather than always blame President Buhari for the attacks in their domains.
