By Editor
The Nigerian Senate has said that the National Assembly will work assiduously to ensure that opportunities wasting around the Nigerian boarder communities as result of insecurity and porosity are tackled head-on.
Speaking on Monday in Abuja at the beginning of a two-day engagement with stakeholders in collaboration with Global Consult Limited, Chairman, Senate committee on States and Local Governments Administration, Senator Binos Dauda Yaroe, Adamawa South stressed that cross boarder crimes have impeded development over the years stressing that his committee will work with relevant stakeholders with the view to integrate sub-national boarder community governments into the economic management of Nigeria.
According to him, the rate of crimes witnessed at the border communities can also be traced to long years of neglect and lack of basic amenities for Nigerian boarder communities, adding that the committee intends to make the engagement an annual event and urged the Local Governments to use the opportunity of the Local Governments Autonomy to create positive impacts of the people living within the boarder communities for their well-being and development.
He said, “We are concerned about development of our boarder communities, the security of the people living there as well as programmes that will give everyone a sense of belonging “
He expressed concerns that most of the boarder communities are yet to be demarcated and properly defined, adding that some of the conflicts are as result no clear cut defined boarders.
In their remarks the deputy Governors of Abia, Gombe and Ekiti states all expressed enthusiasm that finally the Nigerian Senate is considering putting forward the right foot towards addressing the avalanche of challenges that Nigerians living in the border areas pass through on a daily basis.
In his remarks, the Gombe state Deputy Governor Mannaseh Daniel told the stakeholders since the creation of Gombe , the relevant authorities have not made any meaningful effort to clearly define the state’s boarder lines , describing the situation as recipe for unnecessary acrimony with neighboring states .
Also, the Abia state Deputy Governor Ikechukwu Emetu, commended the Nigerian Senate for the bold step to engage the major stakeholders for the good of Nigeria.
Chairman of Global Gold Consult Engineer, Kayode Adegbayo who expressed confidence that the two-day programme will come up with far-reaching solutions that will enhance and improve the living conditions of Nigerians living in the boarder communities and improve economic benefits for Nigeria, however maintained that the desire to collaborate with the Senate was driven by the state of squalor of Nigerians living in those areas and the daily challenges they go through including health care and other basic needs.
On his part, Dr Usman Faruk of the National Boundary Commission said that the best approach for Nigeria in addressing the menace of cross boarder crimes will be the adoption of what he describes as the “Westphalian” method.
Faruk who noted that there are dire consequences should Nigeria continues to neglect the development of boarder communities, said, “The resources and opportunities at the boarder communities are enormous and we must understand that the boarder communities are our windows and doors to the rest of the world and we must develop them”.
He told the gathering that currently Nigeria does not have the correct statistics of boarder communities.
