Edo Police Reports 50% Drop in Kidnapping, Lauds Obaseki’s involvement in Security System

By Isaac Aimurie and Henry Oqua
The Commissioner of Police, Edo State Command Abutu Yaro, has reported a 50 percent drop in kidnapping in the State, due to the deepening of collaboration between the command and the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration.

Speaking after a Security Council meeting that was chaired by Governor Obaseki on Friday, May 13, 2022, at the Government House in Benin City, Yaro said that “Edo State is safer now, than before.”

According to him, many measures have been put in place to reengineer the security system in the State.

He added: “The State Government has done a lot to make the State’s security system work better and the result of these efforts is that Edo is safer now for business enterprise and tourism, and we will continue to do more.”

Commenting on the executive summary of the security incidents for February to April 2022, which was presented at the meeting, Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, said that month-on-month, total crime incidents dropped between February and April 2022.

Kidnappings in the months of February and March in the year under review was 38, but dropped to 19 in April, which translates to 50 percent reduction.

For homicide, there were 22 cases in February, but rose to 35 in April. The Governor traced the rise to land dispute, communal and herdsmen clashes as well as vehicular accidents.

The Governor however expressed concern over the rising cases of drug use and blamed the trend on the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). Drug cases were 19 in February and rose to 34 in March.
Obaseki said: “There has been a rise in the use of drugs and it is not unconnected with the ASUU strike that has kept students at home. I want to appeal to ASUU and the Federal Government to end the strike as soon as possible so that we do not destroy them.  As you know, the idle mind is the devil’s workshop.”

“We want to also appeal to the Federal Government to repair the Benin-Auchi Road which has accounted for the large number of vehicular accidents in the months under review.”