Bayelsa State government has commenced the training of recruits into its Community Safety Corps.
No fewer than 607 selected recruits are currently undergoing training at the Bayelsa Sports Institute at Asoama in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of the state.
The Chief Security Coordinator and Coordinator of the Bayelsa State Community Safety Corps, Brig-Gen. Eric Angaye (rtd), disclosed this during a briefing after the state’s 21st security council meeting presided over by Governor Douye Diri at Government House, Yenagoa.
Gen. Angaye said at the end of the two-month training, the recruits would assist the police to enhance security in the state.
He explained that they would be deployed to all communities across the state.
Also, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Ben Okolo, said the security council reviewed the achievements and challenges recorded in the security sector in 2022.
He said several arrests were made including kidnappers, pipeline vandals and sea pirates.
Mr. Okolo lauded Senator Diri for his administration’s assistance that enabled the security agencies perform their duties, noting that lack of logistics was one of their challenges.
He also presented a former commissioner in the state for Special Duties (Federal Projects), Engr. Mike Ogiasa, who was kidnapped for six months before he recently regained freedom.
On his part, Engr. Ogiasa described his ordeal as traumatic, saying he was abducted on June 2, 2022, blindfolded for months and moved to four different camps.
He also revealed that the sum of N30 million was paid as ransom and expressed gratitude to Governor Diri and the security agencies for their roles in ensuring his release.
Earlier, the governor said Bayelsa remains one of the safest states in the country as well as a suitable destination for tourism and investments to thrive.
He attributed the prevailing peace and security in the state, particularly during the yuletide, to the collective efforts of the service commanders and operatives of the various security agencies.
Governor Diri commended the peaceful disposition of people of the state and for supporting his Prosperity Administration in promoting peace, stability and sustainable development.
He said: “We needed this meeting to review what we have done for the year 2022. I therefore use this medium to congratulate the service commanders and the people of Bayelsa for their peaceful conduct and for assisting the security agencies to ensure that the state was crime-free throughout the yuletide.
“So far, Bayelsa is a safe haven for investment and tourism. The state is equally safe and secure for all citizens, indigenes and non-indigenes alike. All that is required of citizens is to continue to abide by the laws of Bayelsa and that of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
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