Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, OFR, has assured that he will continue to work with the relevant Federal Government Agencies to reduce the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the country.

Governor Otti gave this assurance while receiving in audience, a delegation of the new South East Zonal Director of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons led by Captain Chris Anusiem, who called on him at his office.

He said that almost all crimes are committed with small arms and light weapons and stressed the need to reduce it if not eliminate them.

“I want to assure you that the Abia State Government, and the people will cooperate with you and work with you to ensure that you succeed in your assignment.

“Virtually, all the crimes you see around are committed with light weapons and small arms.

“If we don’t eliminate them, or at least reduce them to the barest minimum, then we cannot have peace.

He said that security is central to everything his Government is doing, reiterating that the issue of security cannot be dealt with in silos.

According to the Governor, “everybody must work together. One of the things we have here is that we have security agencies whose heads and everybody work together.

“From time to time, we hold security council meetings and come up with strategies, share ideas on how to eliminate or at least reduce crime to the barest minimum in the State.

“We also, like you rightly pointed out, are working with sister States, so that somebody does not commit a crime here and then take off to a neighbouring State, and that place becomes a haven for him, Gov. Otti stated.

Governor Otti also thanked the Federal Government for setting up the centre as well as thanked President Tinubu for appointing his friend, DIG. Johnson Babatunde Kukum as
Director General of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons and expressed the hope that he would perform well.

Earlier, the new South East Zonal Director of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, Captain Chris Anusiem said that he was in the State for a familiarisation visit, having been newly posted to Enugu to head the South East Zonal office and assured Governor Alex Otti of collaboration to keep the State safe from crimes.

He explained that the vision of the agency is to promote illicit arms-free society, saying that, “Here in the Sahel, our problem is that of small arms in the hands of non-state actors”,

Captain Anusiem, while commending the Governor for his efforts in maintaining peace in Abia State, solicited his support and said that, it is going to be a collective effort to stop the menace of proliferation of arms.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Navy Commander MacDonald Uba was among the top government officials present during the visit.

Ctz. UKOHA, NJOKU UKOHA
Chief Press Secretary to the Executive Governor of Abia State.
16 – 09 – 2025.