Community's Intelligence Key in Combating Banditry — Gov Radda

Governor of Katsina State and the Chairman of the North West Governors Forum, Dikko Radda, has advocated the need to employ the use of community's Intelligence in the fight against banditry in the North-West region.

Radda made the statement during the North West Peace and Security Summit, organised by the North-West Governors Forum at the Government House in Katsina on Monday. 

The summit was tagged, ‘Regional Cooperation For Securing Lives And Livelihood’. 

He said community's intelligence was one of the most efficient communication strategies to ensure timely response to security threats in the region.

Radda said: “Banditry has cast a shadow over our communities. It has disrupted lives, and crippled economic activities, and instilled fear among the people. We cannot allow this menace to define our region.

“As leaders, we must adopt a multiple approach that includes robust intelligence gathering, community policing, and deployment of advanced security technologies.

“Furthermore, we must employ the capacity of our national security agencies, through continuous improvement of resources.

“To effectively combat insecurity, we must strengthen our intelligence network.

“This means improving our surveillance system, investing in modern technologies such as drones and satellite imagery, and enhancing coordination among various security agencies.

“However, addressing insecurity is not solely the responsibility of our security agencies. We must engage with local communities, traditional rulers, and religious leaders to foster a culture of cooperation and trust.

“Community's engagement is crucial in gathering actionable intelligence and resilience against criminal activities”.

He explained that insecurity is always a concern and urged all to protect the region.