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Calabar, The City Where The Criminals Are Confident BY RICHARD INOYO

Just last month , June 2024, the street adjacent to Ibom Close known as Iso Qua, a new Toyota Corolla car was stolen. The owner had parked his car briefly to see a friend, by the time he came out, the car was gone. That car is still at large just like my organization’s car and those of others that were stolen last year and this year. The Cross River State Government perhaps is waiting for more cars to be stolen with more persons becoming victims before they resolve these crimes and provide closure to the victims.

That same axis where this crime occured, the entire merchandise, a young mother of three had in her shop were looted after the criminals had broken into her shop via the roof. 

Just last week, a Toyota Camry car that belonged to a welder at Old Ikang a street that is off Ibom Layout witnessed a strange scene. The welder had parked his car in the compound where he usually parks his car. The said compound had a gate and the gate was locked. But the following morning he woke up to see that his vehicle was no longer where he parked his car inside the compound, and that the gate they locked was opened. On getting outside the compound he was lucky to see that his car was inside the gutter next to the compound, on and steaming with the key still inside. The thieves had mistakenly driven the car into the gutter causing the shaft of the car to break and from there they fled and abandoned the car they had successfully removed from the compound where the car was parked.

This scenario of cars being stolen in Calabar is distressing with victims of these crimes suffering while the State Government claims security is everybody’s business whereas the government takes the security votes monthly with next to nothing to show that insecurity is being tackled.

As I speak, there is now a steady and sustained rise in petty crimes ranging from shop-breaking and house looting as well as stealing of foodstuffs, iron poles used in drying clothes and a host of items such as gas cylinders, provisions, etc. 

I’ve been asked perhaps twice, “What is the job of an activist?” In my response, I reminded the seeker that “An activist reports the story affecting lives and persuades the government to live up to its primary responsibility of guaranteeing safety of lives and properties, along with important welfarist programs that make the same possible to achieve. And at Citizens’ Solution Network, our observatory is forever focused on investigating, documenting and reporting what is going on while demanding appropriate responses from those saddled with the responsibility of doing their jobs after they had grabbed security votes in the name of an entire State”.  

I suspect, it may interest you the reader to know that, as we speak, there is no police patrol occuring around several communities and streets in Calabar. Too often, the policemen are on the Marian axis and elsewhere harassing drivers and extorting N100 from bus drivers while causing needless roadblock and traffic. Whereas the communities that need police presence won’t find a patrolling van with men on it combing the environment. 

Further discussion with policemen shows that they don’t have the vans to move around and most of their vans are not only in bad shape, they lack the fuel to move around communities at night, thereby leaving residents and citizens to become victims of confident criminals that now move with uncapped audacity. Question is, “Why the deliberate and systematic underfunding of residential and citizens’ security while the State corners allocation monthly and provides bank clearance security to the Governor and political office holders alone, while the rest of the public is left to negotiate their own safety?”. You may wish to ask, “Are all citizens not equal?”

But that isn’t the end of the conversation. While the Cross River State Government is busy grabbing security votes monthly running into hundred of millions of Naira, the same government is busy telling the citizens that security is everybody’s business while crimes are left unresolved and on the rise. The question therefore is, “What is the Cross River State Government doing with the security votes?”

As we speak, there is no visible investment in surveillance technology and there is no single program aimed at engaging the youths_ Thousands of youths are without jobs or decent opportunity aimed at giving them hope and possible source of livelihood. When last did you see a new police van in any of the police stations? Yet new cars are being shared to politicians who contribute nothing to the community.

While officials in government continue to collect security votes in the name of the State, citizens can’t point to a single program aimed at tackling poverty, creating jobs or creating access to capital for willing entrepreneurs who are hoping that a business financial program should be introduced by the State Government to boost the economy for good. 

With rainy season comes with a spike in crime rates. Let it be on record, the continuous strategy of denial and pretending about this crime spike adopted by the State government won’t address crime, it will only embolden criminals to continue to lead the surge in crime crest.

May 29, 2023 was the best time to act, but today isn’t that late. As citizens of conscience, do well to ask your Governor and his Executives, “What exactly are their programs to end crime and meaningfully engage the youths beyond the strategy of denial and propaganda?” The time to send that question is now. 

We need more than just hope and empty rhetoric, we need concrete investment in security, youths, elderly citizens and the economy, lest more persons become victims due to the absence of superior crime fighting strategy.

Richard F. Inoyo is the Country Director of Citizens Solution Network and the Principal Consultant of Carthinium Group Ltd. He writes from Calabar.

NOTE: Opinions expressed in this article are strictly attributable to the author, Richard F. Inoyo and do not represent the opinion of CrossRiverWatch or any other organization the author works for/with.

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