South East Governors Unit Against Alleged Boko Haram Inmates Transfer To Anambra Prison

Governors of the South-East states under the aegis of the South-East Governors’ Forum yesterday charged the presidency to relocate the 43 Boko Haram suspects in Anambra State to Abuja. At a joint news briefing in Owerri, the Imo State capital, the governors stated that Abuja has adequate security to contain such high profile criminals. Governor Rochas Okorocha, who spoke on behalf of the governors, called on the presidency to take a second look at the relocation of the 43 Boko Haram suspects to Anambra State, saying the development has only created fear and anxiety in the region. Okorocha noted that the apprehension of the people was genuine and, as such, was an issue of concern to the governors of the region.Okorocha said: “This reminds me of our experience during the Ebola crisis; no local government agreed to our siting an Ebola centre in their domain. So, we brought the Ebola centre to the Government House where we can directly supervise it. In the same way, if there is any better place to keep the Boko Haram suspects, it is Abuja where there is maximum security facilities to contain them and protect the people.”
The governors also urged the Federal Government to consider and compensate South-Easterners who were displaced due to the activities of the Boko Haram sect; those who lost their loved ones, businesses and sources of livelihood in the North. The Forum also resolved to establish the South-East economic hub, which would promote commercial activities, trade and industry.
“We have resolved to work together as one people. We have been able to separate politics from governance and our focus is to better the lot of our people and elevate the fortunes of our region,” Okorocha said. At the meeting, Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State was nominated as Chairman, Committee for the Establishment of the South-East Economic Hub. Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State was also in attendance. Ebonyi State was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Kelechi Igwe, while the Anambra State governor on whose domain the 43 suspects are being kept, was conspicuously absent, without any representation.
-New Telegraph