Governor Alex Otti of Abia State over the weekend, met with his Enugu state counterpart, Peter Mbah in Umuahia to deliberate among other things on the way forward to tackle insecurity in the South East.
Speaking after a closed door meeting the two governors held at Government House, Umuahia, Otti said his administration would continue to collaborate with the government of Enugu state and his other governors in the South East to enhance security in the region.
He thanked Mba for the cordial relationship existing between the governments of Enugu and Abia states and for the visit to Abia.
“You know, we share boundaries. So, some of the things we discussed are on how to ensure that there is security and that our people are secured in those places.
“So, we talked about the Enugu state government and Abia state government partnering, because, if he successfully drives away criminals from there, they will probably end up here.
“If we don’t do anything, then, one part of the region will be secured and the other part will not be. So, this kind of cooperation is very important,” Otti stated.
Otti said that his administration and many other states are in support of the creation of state police and expressed the hope that the Federal Government would consider their position in no distant time.
“I’m completely in sync with my brother’s (Gov. Mba) position. As a matter of fact, our two states and many other States, have supported the creation of state police.
“And, I believe that the Federal government will do something about that very soon. You know, the issue about security is local, just like politics,” Gov. Otti maintained.
Otti affirmed his support for the call for the creation of an additional State in the South East region, noting that South East is the only region across the six geo-political zones that has less than six States.
Speaking also,Mba said he came to rub minds with Otti on issues of common interest for the two states which he said was centered on providing a better life for the people as both of them came from the private sector.
He noted that coming from the same geo-political zone and sharing common boundaries, their programmes and policies must have far reaching impacts on the two states, and commended the giant strides of Otti.
“So, I essentially came to talk about how we would continue to serve our people better. And so, that’s largely why I’m here for us to compare notes.
“I also came to commend him for the great work he is doing for the people of Abia State across several sectors. And I’m sure, you know that’s something we have in common between Abia and Enugu”, Mba said.
