The Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, has advocated community policing as a key strategy for tackling insecurity across the country.
The Sultan said sustainable peace could only be achieved through collaboration between security agencies and local communities.
Represented by the Chiroman Kano, Alhaji Adamu Lamido Sanusi, the Sultan spoke on Wednesday at the Arewa Awareness Summit on Unity Against Insecurity, held at Arewa House, Kaduna.
According to a statement, the Sultan said community members, particularly youths, possessed firsthand knowledge of their environment and should be actively involved in intelligence gathering and crime prevention.
“I personally believe in community policing. To fight crime, we have to work with the people,” he said.
The monarch added that he had consistently worked with Imams, religious leaders, youth groups and other community stakeholders to promote peace and strengthen security in his domain.
“I personally work with the Imams, religious leaders, youth groups and other community stakeholders to address the challenges in my area, working to ensure peace and security in the community,” he said.
He described intelligence gathering as indispensable in combating crime, noting that residents often have better knowledge of suspicious activities within their communities than outsiders.
“The people in the community, especially the youth, are already in the community. They know the community and the areas better than anyone else. You are able to gather more information through collaboration with the community and through multiple agencies working together in the community,” he said.
According to him, effective cooperation between communities and security agencies would significantly strengthen efforts to tackle banditry, kidnapping and other criminal activities.
“So, this cooperation, this working together hand-in-hand, is highly important in fighting crime in our communities and in the country,” he added.
The Sultan also commended the organisers of the summit, describing the initiative as a timely platform for exchanging ideas and strengthening partnerships to address insecurity in Northern Nigeria.
Earlier, the Director-General of the Arewa for Peace, Unity, Cohesion and Development Initiative (ACI), Dr Abdullahi Idris, said the summit was convened to develop practical solutions to insecurity in Northern Nigeria.
He said participants were expected to develop strategies that would strengthen dialogue between communities and the government while promoting collective action against insecurity.
Also, Prof. Mohammed Tasiu Dan Sabo, who represented Prof. Ahmad Rufai, said military operations alone could not guarantee lasting peace.
“There has to be a link between security, justice, governance and livelihoods,” he said, stressing that “lasting peace cannot be achieved through military operations alone.”
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