2015: PDP, APC unfold security agenda at debate

(NIGERIA) The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the leading opposition political party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), have highlighted their concepts on security for Nigeria and how the current security challenge would be addressed.

The parties, at a debate series organised by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) and OSIWA titled: “Nigerian Political Parties Discussion Series (NPPDS) platform” in Abuja, also unfolded their agenda on how good governance would be delivered if they win the 2015 presidential election.

A chieftain of the PDP, Dr Katch Ononuju, represented the party while the APC was represented by its National Vice Chairman, North-West, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir, and the debate was moderated by Mr. Mac Imoni Amarere.

The PDP representative, Dr Ononuju, said the Federal Government has commenced the process of rebuilding the country’s security system; the army, the police and the Department of State Services (DSS), among others, through intense training.

According to him, in order to secure life and property, the government has started training the army, recruiting more soldiers and providing the needed equipment for the troops whose capacity, he said, had been undermined by the military government.

“What we lack is the training. Our boys have not been trained for the past 30 years and since Nigeria never prepared for Boko Haram, it becomes a big challenge,” he said.

Ononuju explained that through the training of the country’s security agencies, the country currently has the best State Security Services (SSS) it has never had.

Also speaking on the party’s plan to addressing the lingering security challenges in the country, the APC chieftain, Alhaji Abdulkadir, assured that when voted into power, the APC government would create millions of jobs as part of the panacea to the insecurity challenge.

He said it was disheartening that the youth who occupy the largest size of the country’s population is growing everyday while employment rate is on the downward trend.

“Lack of job is number one factor of security challenge. The youth who are jobless are ready materials to be used for destruction. So, jobs, jobs are the main purpose of APC. We are more concerned about creation of jobs to combat insecurity; averagely two million jobs yearly,” he said.

Abdulkadir, who acknowledged that the Boko Haram menace predates Jonathan’s administration, reiterated APC’s commitment to encouraging community policing in the country, considering Nigeria’s huge population and vast land mass.

“What is happening today does not just start four years ago or during Jonathan’s administration. I don’t think the number of officers in the Armed Forces in Nigeria is commensurate with our population and land mass. We have to be dynamic. So, in general terms, we believe every locality has its own peculiarity.” he added.

Earlier in her welcome address, the Director of CDD, Idayat Hassan, who said the debate is geared towards promoting issue-based politics, transparency and accountability in government’s engagement with citizens, underscored the need to ensure that the 2015 election campaigns were based on issues that affected the lives of Nigerians.

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