Professional bodies want nation’s security architecture overhauled

By Ochiaka Ugwu

Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN), a group of about thirty major professional organizations has called on the government to as a matter of urgency overhaul the country’s security system, maintaining that the situation is worsening.
APBN, which comprises Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), among others, also urged the government to consider state and community policing as an option.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja Thursday, APBN’s President and Chairman of its Board, Surv. Akin Oyegbola, call on the government to urgently and decisively curb the worsening insecurity of lives and properties in Nigeria.
Oyegbola also called for transparency in the way the ENDSARS panels across the country were being handled, noting that the demands of the protesters must be looked into dispassionately to assuage their grievances.
Oyegbola acknowledged that judicial commissions of inquiry had started sitting in various states of the country, but maintained that the Lekki Tollgate shooting must be properly investigated.
“However, what will unfold next around EndSARS largely depends on the willingness of the federal government to investigate the Lekki Tollgate shootings at the EndSARS protesters in an open and transparent manner and in good faith.
“Concerted efforts by the federal government to address the concerns in the 7-point agenda submitted to President Muhammadu Buhari would also boost the trust in government of the EndSARS protesters and the supportive Nigerian Diaspora,” he said.
Speaking on other national issues, APBN said that the enforcement of stamp duty on house rent and Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) should not be on the priority list of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at a time the country is experiencing a housing deficit and millions of Nigerians are losing their jobs.
He, further, called on all levels of government to develop and improve the health sector, saying that the current health pandemic has shown that various hospitals across the nation need state-of-the-art equipment to manage health crises like the Covid-19 pandemic.
He maintained that the disbursement of the loans by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should be made transparent in accordance with global best practices.
Other members of APBN include: ICAN, NITP, NIA, PSN, NIS, NMGS, CIPM, CIS, NIQS, NIOB, NIESV, NIM, ANAN, ICSAN, IPAN, ICCON, NCS, CITN, CIIN, CIA, AMLSN, CIPSMN, NVMA , NIMN, IMCON and NIPR.