Tai Emeka Obasi
Assuming Gov Willie Obiano was one to be trusted with sincerity of purpose, one would have applauded his launch yesterday even when he spent more of taxpayers’ money in promoting the event as well as inviting dignitaries than actual cost of his so-called ultra modern security gadgets.
Thereby making it clear once more it was more of showmanship than actually trying to secure lives and property of the good people of Anambra State.
When the man from Houston boasted some years ago he had provided drones to use in capturing criminals alive, I couldn’t believe the number of Anambrarians that believed the kindergarten fairytale and genuinely applauded the man for bringing modern touch to governance. Most crimes happen at nights and there were very few streetlights in Anambra to provide visibility for the non infra-red drones, assuming the drones were the real drones that could be operated as well as monitored from a safe and effective distance. Those that used their brains believed it was hoodwinking the people from the off and so it proved.
The next was purchase of horses at exorbitant prices – all in the name of fighting crime. This made me think either this man thought he was the governor of Texas or he was just out to scam ndi Anambra. It proved the latter.
Then we heard from his overzealous media aides that he had mounted CCTV at Onitsha main market to catch criminals live and I wondered what kind of all-knowing CCTV that might have been. A ghost or mystery CCTV that would permiate block works and solid obstacles to monitor hundreds of thousands of people’s shops to catch thieves for Obiano? That foolery soon proved what it was – hoodwinking the alarmingly extreme gullible!
Next Obiano purchased second-hand Toyota vehicles, told ndi Anambra he had refurbished with American gadgets that could catch criminals even before they committed the crimes and the forever Anambra mugus clapped for him. I waited to see how many Ofeakwus and Ngwuekeluomus the Obiano Toyota cars would aide in apprehending to no avail.
What about the monitoring helicopters? A good idea in the face of Herdsmen surge if strictly implemented with cost implication in mind but which is rather a characteristic showmanship and waste of public funds.
For past two years, criminals found out Obiano’s crime fight as more of media showmanship than actually facing the facts of the reality of Anambra special peculiarities and started menacing – kidnapping and robbing with reckless abandon. His media warlords went to war to shoot out few courageous voices that were reporting the sudden collapse of the security in the state. They made the slogan, “Anambra is the safest state in the country” a daily anthem. Again, many Anambrarians, especially those residing outside the state, believed.
But Obiano eventually admitted the highly deteriorated security situation in his state when he re-launched Operation Kpochapu. The question is – can Obiano be trusted to be genuine this time around?
Can he?
Yes, the vehicles provided to fight crime is a step in the right direction but all these hype of sophisticated CCTVs to be mounted around the three major cities of the state fall in line with the showmanship of the governor we know.
All these professional jargon of modern crime-fighting facilities don’t work in isolation. CCTVs are mounted where there are effective 24/7 streetlights for maximum efficiency. Such modern luxury require the denominator of good and maintained roads to maximize pursuits with security vehicles. And more, robbers mainly operate at bad spots along our roads. Maintaining roads on itself reduces crime.
Yes, he bought some Innoson brand, apparently because 2021 is approaching and people should be fooled once more. But if the local vigilant services in all the 177 communities are not empowered along, Obiano’s gadgets will do very little in arresting the security situation in the state.
In his shoes I would have forgotten all about these ‘sophisticated gadgets’ and bought more vehicles for the police and vigilante services for effective response to calls from citizens to crime scenes, especially at nights. That is more to the reality of the situation in our state than mounting CCTVs the criminals will evade and go to people’s homes to rob. But then who am I to advise a governor who loves shows?
Let’s watch and see what and what will be implemented in the sweet talks of yesterday and what and what will follow the known Obiano trend.
How I wish Obiano and his team would prove me wrong.
#AnambraIsInShambles.
