As part of efforts to strengthen internal security in Gombe State, the state governor, Inuwa Yahaya in collaboration with the inspector general of police (IGP) Usman Baba Alkali yesterday launched a special security task force named ‘Operation Hattara’ in the state.
The task force which will be conducting patrols to prevent crimes and deter criminal elements from disrupting peace in the state was unveiled by the IGP during the opening ceremony of the Gombe State Security and Peace Summit convened by the state government and held at Government House Gombe.
At the ceremony, Governor Inuwa said the task force was launched with the purpose of reinforcing security architecture in and around the state. According to him, the task force and the security summit were part of the state government’s strategies of enhancing internal security.
The governor noted that when he came on board, he established the first Ministry of Internal Security and Ethical Orientation in the state with a view to providing an institutional framework at the state level to support federal government’s security agencies.
Inuwa asserted that the decision to establish the ministry is yielding great results as evidenced by the decreasing rates of violent crimes and conflicts in the state adding that the idea to set up the new task force was to consolidate on the gains.
While noting that the state has faced the menace of political thuggery notoriously called ‘Kalare’ who have been terrorising innocent people for years, the governor however stated that following the government’s series of internal security policies, the menace has now reduced drastically.
“The Gombe State Security and Peace Summit was convened by this administration under my leadership to provide an opportunity for a carefully selected cohort of experts, security personnel, government officials and other strategic stakeholders and community leaders to aggregate and explore pressing internal security issues with a view to identifying new security and community pathways of mitigating them for lasting peace and stability,” he said.
In his remarks, the inspector-general of police (IGP) Usman Alkali Baba hailed the governor for setting up the task force and providing vehicles for the security agents that will carry out the operations.
He also said the security summit is coming at a critical time when the country experiences myriad of security challenges. He said the police under his leadership embraced intelligence-based approach and community engagement in their crime reduction and prevention.
The IGP noted that crime is dynamic and requires innovative approaches and initiatives like the ones introduced in Gombe State to tackle them.
