Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti has charged traditional Rulers in the 17 Local Government Areas of the state to join forces with the present administration to root out all forms of crime and criminality from their various localities.
The Governor who gave the charge, Tuesday, while addressing Principal Officers of the state Traditional Rulers Council and their 17LGA Chairmen and Secretaries at Government House, Umuahia, vowed that his administration would be “tough on criminals and those who support them in whatever way or for whatever reason”.
Governor Otti warned that government will not fail to take tough actions against traditional rulers whose domains are used as criminals hideouts further vowed to apprehend and punish criminals who are bent on threatening law and order in the state adding that his administration has zero tolerance for insecurity.
“Silence in the face of iniquity is also a crime in itself so when you see something going wrong in your community and you look away, that means you are supporting what is going wrong.
“The new and improved Abia cannot be achieved without major inputs from stakeholders like you our respected royal fathers.
“Development can only take place when and where concerted efforts are made to ensure the security of lives and property.
“Our state must remain crime free so that our people will go about their businesses with peace of mind and that is where exactly you come in”, Governor Otti stated.
He assured that his government will remain open to the informed counsel of the traditional rulers as well as continue to engage them as strategic partners in the development narratives of the state.
In his speech, the Chairman Abia state council of traditional Rulers, Eze Joseph Nwabeke while thanking God for the victory granted Governor Alex Otti and his subsequent inuaguration as the 5th democratically elected governor of the state, assured of their continued support to his developmental template.
Speaking on behalf of the three senatorial zones of the state, Eze Harry Ugwuala, Eze G. C. Onwuka and Eze Uwakwe Ukaegbu assured the Governor of their support in securing the state and in realizing his vision for a new Abia.
