Rep. Dachung Bagos (PDP-Plateau) has called on the Federal Government and security agencies to deploy modern technology in the fight against insecurity in the country.
Bagos, representing Jos South/Jos East Federal Constituency, made the call on Sunday when he paid a condolence visit to Durbi community of Shere District in Jos East Local Government Area of Plateau.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that gunmen had attacked the community on Friday night and killed two persons.
The lawmaker, who decried the porous nature of the country’s borders, urged government to secure them and rural communities, using modern security gadgets.
Bagos, who expressed deep sadness over the incident, described it as unfortunate.
“Our borders are porous and so, rural communities are now prone to attacks by invaders who unleash mayhem on the people and leave at will.
“My call on the government is based on the need to look into ways of addressing insecurity, in line with the 21st century method.
“We will not make any headway in terms of fighting insecurity if we continue to do it as if we are still in the 70s; we must do it to suit the present times.
“In the present times, you can track anything you want to track at any point and from any location.
“You can see movement of people at any point, using GPS and other technologies.
“It is not just about guns and deployment of troops, but we can do a lot, using artificial intelligence and other modern technologies.
“So, I call on government to deploy technology into addressing the myriad of insecurity bedevelling the nation,” he called.
The lawmaker also called on government to fortify the justice system by ensuring that criminals are properly prosecuted.
This, he said, would go a long way in curbing insecurity in the nation and promote a peaceful society.
“Most often when people are killed and when we come for condolence, we tell them to be calm and law-abiding.
“But the truth is that we cannot talk about peace without justice; peace without justice is a political peace.
“So, government must fortify our justice system so that it will serve as deterrent to others,” he said.
Bagos, while calling on members of the community to remain calm, however, urged them to defend themselves within the confines of the law and not wait on government.
Responding, Mr Istegok Azi, Chairman of Afizere Cultural Community Development Association (ACCDA) in the district, thanked the lawmaker for the visit.
He, however, maintained that the poor road network, mobile network services and other infrastructure deficit contributed to the growing insecurity in the community.
“We don’t have good roads, poor mobile network services, sheer absence of security outpost and other infrastructure are some of the major challenges facing us.
“We are appealing to government through you to come to our aid. We believe that if some of these things are addressed, we will have minimal security challenges here,” he said. (NAN)