The senator representing Edo Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Joseph Ikpea, has called on Nigerians, particularly his Edo constituents to be vigilant and report any strange activity in their areas to security agencies and concerned authorities.

The Senator who made the call in a statement he signed and made available to journalists in Benin on Thursday, said: “It is pertinent at this juncture to call on Nigerians to be more vigilant.

He added: “The issue of security, given the development in our dear nation today, has gone beyond it being the exclusive preserve of the government. All citizens must be involved and take the matter as part of their civic responsibilities to the Nigerian State.

“I want to appeal to the people of Edo Central not to consider the alert as raised by the Department of State Security as the problem of Edo North Senatorial District because the security advisory did not mention Edo Central.

“It is obvious that the undesirable elements responsible for this dastardly act of kidnapping don’t discriminate against tribe and region. Therefore, our people must be conscious of their environment, study all strange faces that come into their neighbourhood and take the bold step by reporting any strange activity around them to security agents and the authorities concerned. We should not wait till it happens before we act”. He counselled.

Reacting to the closure of some schools in Edo State, Ikpea commended Governor Monday Okpebholo for the proactive steps he took by closing down the secondary schools in the state following a red alert raised by the Department of State Security (DSS) on the plan by some bandits to attack some schools in the state.

Senator Ikpea said that by closing some of the schools prone to the threat as warned by the DSS, Okpebholo had shown uncommon leadership and full grasp of the elementary principle of governance which places a premium over the wellbeing of the people.

According to him, with the situation of security in the nation, it was just ideal that the governor did not treat the security red alert raised by the top security agency with kids’ gloves.

“I want to commend His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo, the Executive Governor of our dear state, Edo State, for the prompt decision he took yesterday by closing down three different secondary schools in the Akoko Edo Area of the state following the security alert raised by the Department of State Security that some undesirable elements in our society were planning to attack some schools in Edo North Senatorial District with a view to kidnapping our children.

“The decision by the Governor Okpebholo to act swiftly when he got the information goes to show his good and uncommon leadership and understanding of the principle of governance which stipulates that the government must seek the wellbeing of the people at all times.

“There is no doubt the decision to close the school at this period comes with its pain given that students across the nation are writing one national or sub-continental examination, it is just ideal that the governor closed the schools instead of waiting for the evil act to be perpetrated.” Senator Ikpea stated.

Senator Ikpea, while praising the Department of State Security and other security agencies in the state for their collaboration with the Governor Okpebholo-led administration for making Edo State safe, assured that he would continue to support any initiative by the Edo State Government to rid the state of all undesirable elements.