By CHIMEZIE ANASO

Gov. Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra, on Wednesday received the final report of the Anambra Truth, Peace and Justice Commission, set up to investigate the remote and immediate causes of insecurity in the state and by extension, South East region.

Soludo took delivery of the report from Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, chairman of the Commission, in company of other members, including Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu, its secretary, at Government House, Awka.

Members of the Anambra Executive Council and representatives of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) were at the ceremony.

Soludo Commended Odinkalu and other members of the Commission who worked for about 20 months for their dedication and historic report.

He said the report had the potential to serve as a national framework for addressing security challenges while expressing worries over the impact of crime and violence on young people.

He assured that he would take swift action based on the recommendations of Commission, adding that he would devolve his cabinet into sub-committees to study and analyse for purposes of implementation.

“There is a need for collaboration between federal agencies, regional governments, security services including the State Vigilante Group, and the local communities, and I plan to share the report with national security agencies and work with neighboring states to address the cross-border nature of criminal activities.

“I am committed to achieving sustainable peace in the region, assuring citizens that he will “read every sentence” in the report and ensure its recommendations are implemented for a safer future.

“I cannot overemphasise the importance of community involvement, including religious institutions, in tackling the challenges, it is a crusade approach requiring collective action,” he said.

In his remark, Odinkalu thanked the Governor for entrusting them with the task.

The former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, noted that the biggest structural factor in violence is the political economy of land, not IPOB/ESN.

He argued that while Lagos was gaining land, Anambra which was the second least land endowed, was losing it to erosion and impunity.

“The Commission surveyed 66 communities in the state, documenting cases of traditional rulers, security agents, presidents-general and community members who have disappeared and remained missing”.

The Human Rights Lawyer said there was a need to stop using the term “unknown gunmen,” especially by the media as they were identifiable human beings.

He called for development of a 25-year security strategy to reform community governance and establish an agency for the protection of victims and accountability for violence. (NAN)

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