PCRC chairman leads members to clean Victoria Island streets after protests

• Urge banks to provide long-term loans for youths with bright ideas
In a bid to reclaim the city of Lagos after days of looting and brigandage, the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) has commenced cleaning of streets and clearing of blockades on the roads. They have also called on Nigeria banks to assist the Federal Government in curbing unemployment and youths restiveness by giving loans to young people.

Chairman of PCRC Victoria Island, Mathew Ibadin, led his members yesterday for the exercise aimed at restoring hope. He said government couldn’t solve all the problems; therefore, banks should intervene and empower young people with bright ideas with loans.

Ashes from burnt tyres by protesters were cleared from the streets, while stones, broken bottles and wood logs littering the entire Victoria Island axis were cleared as part of their social responsibility initiative.

The group has also acquired a power bike for the monitoring of traffic in Victoria Island area as part of effort to support the police.

Ibadin said: “What happened in the last few weeks should teach every Nigerian, including the banks a lesson. The banks should now begin to provide long-term loans of 10 to 20 years to young minds to power their business ideas. Their National ID card is enough guarantee. Banks are just there and not playing their roles the way it is done abroad. Their interest is to make money.

“They should begin to support youths with good ideas and fund their businesses. They should begin to provide mortgage. Government cannot reach everyone directly, but through the banks, all the needs of young people could be met the way it is done overseas.”

It would be recalled that the same PCRC in Victoria Island recently launched its traffic corps marshals during its first symposium. At the launch then, a university don, Dr. Ona Ekhomu, in his speech, said residents must trust the police with information about crime and criminals to achieve a crime-free state through community policing.

He said: “Community policing is anchored on a productive relationship between the patrol officers and the community members as well as interacting with community members to finding problems and solving problems.

“Having a PCRC is not community policing, and in order to establish trust and obtain citizens’ cooperation, the police must eschew all trust busters and become a trustworthy agency.”