In response to a viral report on Sunday that the administration of Governor Alex Otti has approved the involvement of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) to fight the menace of Fulani Herdsmen and protect Abia Farmers, the Abia State Government has insisted that it never made such a statement, describing it as malicious and misleading.
The alleged decision of the state government to engage the ESN, which is the armed group of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, was said to be because of the continued inaction of Nigerian Security Forces.
The Abia government is now saying that the post is intended to create disaffection and cause unnecessary tension in the state, insisting that Governor Alex Otti’s government has nothing to do with such a rumour peddled by a faceless blogger.
On Sunday, the Special Adviser to the Governor, Ferdinand Ekeoma, issued a statement stating that the Otti administration could not have considered engaging non-state actors to fight criminals and insecurity in any part of the state.
It expressed the State Government’s implicit confidence in various security agencies, leading to the establishment of the state’s joint security taskforce, codenamed “Operation Crush.”
Ekeoma also revealed that the joint task force has recorded tremendous success in the entire state and has kept the state safe and secure despite pockets of armed robbery and kidnapping, which the government is working tirelessly to eliminate.
“The Government reminds those who have decided to play dirty politics by inciting fear and violence against the state and its citizens, not minding the danger they pose to the lives and property of Abians, that their actions will attract severe consequences whenever they are caught,” Ekeoma said.
The state government urged residents to ignore the false statement and view it as another move by desperate enemies of the state to portray it in a bad light for their selfish agenda.
The statement read: “The authors of the statement issued a similar fake statement a few weeks ago, but we intentionally ignored them. However, we feel it has become necessary for the government to respond to the latest statement so that innocent and unsuspecting members of the public will not fall prey to such a dubious fabrication.
“For the records, the government of Abia State under the leadership of Dr. Alex Otti could not have contemplated embracing the services of none-state actors to fight criminals and insecurity of any kind in any part of the state.”
