Transform vigilantes into state police — Gyang

The Gbong Gwom Jos, Dr. Jacob Buba Gyang, yesterday said government should begin to consider ways of transforming members of vigilante groups into a formal structure that would become state police.
Gyang was speaking in reaction to a paper presented by Prof. Adu Gambo on ‘Managing Security at the Local Government Level’ at the two day workshop for local government administration organised by Daily Trust and the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS).
Prof. Gambo had called for the use of vigilante groups at the local  government level to help curtail security challenges on the basis that the number of policemen in the country was inadequate.
Gyang, who served as the chairman of the fourth session during discussions at the workshop, said while he did not oppose the important role of vigilante groups, there was the need to structure them into a formal organisation that can become the state police.
“If we don’t begin to capture these young men now and begin to put them into a command structure, we will face another Boko Haram. Even now, some of them are involved in cattle rustling, armed robbery and other things,”
“Yes, the vigilantes are very important but let us go beyond the present security threat. If by God’s grace we pray to overcome the present security challenges, what do we do with these young boys that have been armed and know so much about security issues?” he said.