….Says State Police Crucial to Tackling lnsecurity

Edo State Acting Governor, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu, has condemned in very strong terms, the wantom killing of 41 year-old Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Christopher Odia, in Ikabigbo, Etsako West Local Government Area of the State, even as he called on the National Assembly to urgently amend the constitution for the creation of State Police, as a panacea to tackling the rising wave of insecurity in the country.

The Acting Governor who led government functionaries, including top brass of the security agencies, comprising the Police, Army and DSS, while addressing the journalists after an assessment visit to the area, urged the community members, particularly the protesting youths to be calm as government was on top of the situation.

He condoled with the Head of Ikabigbo Community, Chief Aleghe
Braimah; bereaved family of Yusuf Nurudeen, a vigilante member who lost his life, during a failed rescue mission of the slain reverend father,by the community youths, hunters and vigilance group, the Ogieneni of Uzairue, HRH Kadiri Omogbai as well as the Catholic Bishop of Auchi Diocese, Gabriel Dunia.

According to Shaibu, his visit to the community was to condole with the Uzairue people and get first-hand knowledge of the unfortunate incident.

“The unfortunate attack resulted in the killing of Rev. Fr. Christopher Odia, a Priest at the St. Michael’s Catholic Church, lkabigbo.l have received briefs from eyewitnesses in the community and l have assured the people that the assailants will be brought to book and made to pay for their heinous crime”.

Continuing, he said: ” we are pained by the loss of both the reverend father and the vigilante member who was killed, but l am particularly happy with our youths, the vigilante group and community hunters who failed in their bid to rescue the reverend father”.

“We also commend the police and the military for their prompt action. We are saddened that we lost our loved ones. We will also look at what happened here critically for us to rejig our security architecture, because Edo State has been relatively peaceful”.

“We will not allow these miscreants to come into our State and disrupt the peace we are already enjoying. Edo will be too hot for them. We will assess what has happened to know how to correct them”, Shaibu noted.

In his remarks, Commissioner of Police, Edo State Command, Compol Abutu Yaro, told the community members to be vigilant, while assuring that the Police in synergy with other security agencies, will do everything possible to arrest the criminals for their dastardly action.

“Let me implore the community to partner with the Police, the local Army and DSS in order to ensure your action does not run foul of the law”.

Also speaking, the Catholic Bishop of Auchi Diocese, Gabriel Dunia, lamented the loss of Rev. Father Christopher Odia.

“The Catholic Church is greatly pained by this ugly incident and we want to thank the State Government for coming to mourn with us. I think what has happened is a wake up call for everybody in the community to be more alert and security conscious to avoid this kind of sad event”, he said.