Umahi blames politicians for fuelling insecurity for selfish gains

Ebonyi State Governor Dave Umahi, on Thursday, May 19, criticised politicians for Nigeria’s escalating insecurity.

Umahi, who spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today, named past resource management and politicians’ involvement, particularly in the South-East, as some of the issues that have contributed to the country’s current security challenges.

He claimed that some politicians are exacerbating insecurity for personal benefit.

Umahi said: “There are politicians who are profiting from the crisis. They believe that if the All Progressives Congress fails, it is to their advantage. They forget that there has to be a country before an election.

“Politicians empower thugs. You’ll see a politician’s official security protecting thugs. There is a very low level of patriotism and everything is politicized.”

Umahi promised to solve the problem using what he termed “a bottom-top approach” if elected the country’s president in 2023.

“I believe in a bottom-top approach. Ebonyi is one of the safest states in Nigeria because our vigilante collaborates with the police. Also, there is a need for information and engagements from region to region.”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, says President Muhammadu Buhari will determine fate of those Ministers who shelved their political ambitions.

Lai Mohammed stated this when he fielded questions from State House correspondents after the weekly virtual meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), on Wednesday, May 18.

The meeting was presided over by President Buhari at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Lai Mohammed said he needed to confirm the position of things as regard the status of the returning cabinet members on whether they have been properly reabsorbed or otherwise.

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The minister said: “The other question about ministers returning or not going, I think you need to give me more time so that I can tell you exactly what the situation is.