The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), on Tuesday inaugurated a committee on reinforcing safety and emergency preparedness with a view to maintain a safe environment without fear or anxiety.
The Permanent Secretary of FCTA, Mr Olusade Adesola, while inaugurating the committee in Abuja, assured that the administration would continue to support security agencies and safety stakeholders to succeed in keeping residents safe.
Adesola said that public safety was a fundamental right in democratic societies which the FCT administration was committed to preserve.
“In preserving this fundamental right, the role of government agencies and other local actors is to be proactive. It is in line with those roles that the committee was constituted at the first instance.
“And, prevailing security challenges have made its reconstitution and inauguration an imperative.”
He assured that the FCTA would accord the committee all the necessary support within the limits of available resources.
He said that this was necessary, not only because it was the nation’s capital but in the overall interest of attaining the status of one of the safest cities in the world.
Adesola told members of the committee that their assignment centered on reinforcing safety and emergency preparedness in the FCT and the extent to which they succeed depend on their level of engagement and participation of target groups in all communities.
He said that without the support and active participation of the people, government responsibly of providing and maintaining security would be difficult to achieve.
Earlier, the Director-General, FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Abbas Idriss, said the committee was not only the agency’s response mechanisms but would also serve as a check mechanism for tendencies that are inimical to society’s common good.
Idriss explained that the committee had the responsibility of devising workable strategies to improve the safety of the lives and properties of the people in the FCT.
“This committee was first constituted at a time when bombs started rearing their ugly heads in the FCT, leaving in their wake and trail bloodshed and destruction that we are still struggling to erase from our memories years after.”
The director-general, therefore, urged members of the committee to strive to win the support of people so that they in turn would drive the implementation of whatever strategy was passed to them in their respective locations.
Also, the Guest Lecturer, Mr Ayuba Auta of Centre for Intelligence and Security Analysis, Abuja, enjoined members of the committee to ensure high sense of responsibility and uphold professionalism in discharging their duties.
He also emphasised the need for sustain inter-agency collaboration, adding that no single agency can succeed without the support of the other.
“Inter-agency remains the most desirable and functional option for reinforcing safety and emergency preparedness and national security at large,” he said.
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