Ajimobi Inaugurates N300m CCTV Cameras To Tackle Security
Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi on Tuesday commissioned the Safe City Project comprising the N300 million Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras in 10 crime-prone areas to tackle security challenges in Ibadan, the state capital.
The cameras, which feed a control room under a round-the-clock surveillance, monitor activities at major junctions in the city.
Ajimobi while speaking, attributed the influx of blue chip companies and other businesses to the state to the success of his administration’s huge investments in security since he assumed office in 2011.
He said his administration had delivered on good governance which he attributed to the enabling environment brought about by the pervading peace as well as security of lives and property.
The governor said, “I have always said that a good leader will take his people to where they want to be but a great leader will take them to where they ought to be, while he envisions movement to another greater level.
“Our immediate effort in 2011 at stopping crime and criminal activities yielded results as our special joint security outfit which we codenamed “Operation Burst” had done a lot in restoring peace to our otherwise troubled state.
“Today, Oyo State is ranked as one of the most peaceful states in Nigeria and this has reflected in the upsurge of commercial activities in the state. This has led to Oyo State being adjudged as one of the five states with ease of doing business in the country.”
The governor used the occasion to reiterate his call for the establishment of state police as the only panacea to crime in Nigeria.
He said he was the first governor to present the proposal for state police at a national security meeting at Abuja where he gave the details of the advantages inherent in each state having its own police to fight local crimes.
Ajimobi said: “Go round the world and see those advanced democracies; you will see that there is none of them without state police. All the states in the United States of America, France, Canada and other countries have their own respective police.
“The state police will be staffed with people from the local communities where they have deep knowledge about the terrain and the inhabitants therein. That is why no crime goes undiscovered in the Western world.’’
