Security in Enugu: The Ugwuanyi’s Legacy

8 min readAug 22, 2020

constantly improving with the support of the current government and the armed forces

In September 2018, I answered the clarion call to serve as a National Youth Corps member in Enugu State. It was my first visit to the region and I initially felt some trepidation. With the level of insecurity in Nigeria, I was worried about my first visit to Enugu and the East.

As a child, I had always wanted to serve my fatherland in one of the Northern states but had to change my mind in adulthood due to increased reports of violence in the region. Now, here I was on my way to Enugu.

My first few weeks in Enugu state were spent at the NYSC Awgu camp where we had representatives from all branches of the armed forces guarding us. In that situation, while well-protected, it was impossible to gauge the adequacy of security in the state since we were likely better-protected than the average citizen. After camp, however, I went home for two weeks and returned to Enugu which would be my home for the next year.

As a newcomer in Enugu, I heard stories of times when the state was so unsafe many died weekly due to cult members and police clashes. On my return, after the post-camp 2 weeks leave, I initially lived at Ogui junction and my hosts at the time told me of the clashes that used to be commonplace in Enugu until the government curbed this problem.

HOW THE CULTISM PROBLEM WAS RESOLVED

Cultism is an age-old problem in the Nigerian society, transforming from its peaceful beginnings into a violent organization that has too often preyed on students and other members of society. Conceived by the Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka and other like-minded intellectuals at the University of Ibadan, what was initially a noble idea fast became an instrument of terror against Nigerians. In the decades since its inception, the organization has split into different cult organizations who commit all sorts of violent crimes against each other and the general public for power and personal gains.

Around 2010, cultism in Enugu state was at its peak in schools around the state, particularly in Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) as cultists had completely taken over schools, maiming and killing at will, especially around exams/graduation period. This went on for long until the state government swung into action, empowering the anti-cult squad to take necessary steps to meet the cultists head-on.

This worked and to date, cultism in Enugu state has reduced. When the present governor; Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi was elected into power, he continued the efforts of his predecessor and made sure cultism was given no chance to rear its ugly head through the continued efforts of the Nigerian police and the anti-cult units.

In 2020, while cultism has largely died down, elements of it remain with the cultists now targeting secondary school children across the state for conscription. The police have fought back against this by going on frequent campaigns in the state to educate members of the general public to be able to nip any cult activities in the bud.

EMPOWERING THE NIGERIAN POLICE

As the primary law enforcement organization in the country, the Nigerian police have the largest part to play in the enforcement of law and order in the state and since Gov. Ugwuanyi consistently supports and ensures the police have the funds and manpower needed to carry out their duties. Some examples include:

Donation of security vehicles to the police

In October 2019, journalists gathered at the Government House to witness the governor hand over 65 patrol vehicles to the Nigerian police. The vehicles, purchased from the indigenous automobile company; Innoson Vehicle manufacturing (I.V.M), were part of several vehicles the governor purchased for security agencies as part of his efforts to combat crime in the state.

The state commissioner of police, Ahmad Abdulrahman who on behalf of the IGP of police, received the vehicles, thanked the governor and acknowledged the gesture as a demonstration of his commitment to the security of Enugu state and its people. He promised to use the patrol vehicles judiciously and enjoined his men to ensure that the vehicles would be used to further the interests and safety of the Enugu people.

Community policing

The responsibility of securing the neighborhoods of Enugu has not been left solely in the hands of the Nigerian police as vigilante groups have been set up to police local communities. While the Nigerian police remain the foremost authority in enforcing law and order, there are a lot of incidents which happen daily and to expect the police to monitor them all is not feasible and would result in them being stretched too thin to properly function.

As a result, several vigilante groups have been set up to police the communities, especially at night. They patrol and monitor events in the neighborhood and hand any suspects apprehended over to the police. In addition to the patrol vehicles handed over to the police, the governor also donated several cars and motorcycles to vigilante units to enable them to carry out their tasks effectively.

Enugu Forest Guards

Kidnapping has become one of the biggest fears of Nigerians around the country as citizens live in fear of being abducted by armed men who usually hide their victims deep inside forests until the ransom is paid. What happens after the ransom has been paid is often up to the kidnappers who more often than not, kill the victims to keep their hideout a secret. The forest guards were started to solve this problem. The Enugu Government fed up with the spate of kidnappings, set up this organization with support from y a coalition of the South-eastern states at a meeting held at the Government House, Enugu.

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi took a couple of decisive actions after the meeting;

He chose 100 people from each of the 17 local governments in the state and set up the Enugu forest guard.
He sent a bill to the state assembly that would guarantee the stiffest possible punishment for kidnappers caught in the state.
He ordered the demolition of the caves at Awgu local government where kidnappers have been known to make their escape in the past. This measure didn’t go down well in many quarters, however.
He set up security checkpoints on the Enugu-Port Harcourt road and had the surrounding bush cleared to improve visibility for the soldiers manning the checkpoints.

The role of the Nigerian Army in Enugu Security

Usually, the Nigerian military is not expected to maintain law and order among civilians. However, considering the unusual times we live in, it has become all hands are on deck to ensure the security of the country, and the Nigerian army has certainly played their part.

During my NYSC, I bounced around a couple of places before I ended up living in the Nigerian Army 82nd Division Barracks at Abakpa Junction for the remainder of my service year.

Throughout my stay in 82 division, the barracks were safe (as expected). Outside, however, I noticed that the soldiers would routinely pile into trucks and go around Enugu town en masse in a “show of force”. This was meant to serve as a deterrent to any troublemakers and it worked. Additionally, soldiers man checkpoints around the state and not just at the barracks. On a trip to Nsukka, we passed several checkpoints manned by policemen and Nigerian army soldiers. The Nigerian army was also given some IVM patrol vehicles to help them in their duties.

The Nigerian air force was also tasked with flying over the forests to conduct aerial reconnaissance over the areas difficult to reach on foot and report any suspicious activity to forces on the ground. This is a development that is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

COVID-19 CONTAINMENT

The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the lives of people around the globe, changing the way we live and interact with each other, maybe forever. When the pandemic started spreading around Nigeria, the president and many governors decided to put in place either lockdowns or partial curfews to limit the spread of the virus.

The governor of Enugu state was proactive in working to limit the spread of the virus; restricting large gatherings, ordering roadblocks to be set around the state and manning them with soldiers and policemen to ensure any unauthorized travelers did not come in/pass through the state. As a result of these actions, safe normalcy has returned to the state.

MISSTEPS:

In January this year, a young woman filed a rape report at the Abakpa police station accompanied by her lawyer. The lawyer later said the police had been hostile to the young woman, asking irrelevant questions and even slut-shaming her. The lawyer was insistent and the woman eventually filed the report and the suspect was arrested.

Soon after, according to the lawyer, the police officers began to call and press the lawyer into influencing her client to settle with the accused’s family.

Four policemen eventually ended up storming the office of the Women’s Aid Collective (WACOL), assaulting the lawyer and other staff at the office, and seizing their phones. The lawyer was eventually rushed to the hospital where she was resuscitated and her client detained by the policemen and pressured to recant her testimony. It took the matter trending on twitter to call attention to the story and stop what the policemen were trying to do.

To date, there have been no further updates to the matter in what is common behavior for the Nigerian police. Such conduct cannot be tolerated and must be stamped out. The guilty officers have to be arrested and sacked and members of the police force have to be taught how to deal with such cases properly. It is also important to punish such policemen to act as a deterrent to others.

Enugu State security has been constantly improving with the support of the current government and the armed forces.

In the past decade, security in Enugu has risen tremendously.

Yet, it can be even better. When one resident is safe, all residents are safe.

Edited by Ese Okereka

Originally published at http://discoverenugu042.wordpress.com on August 22, 2020.