BEVERLY HILLS, October 23, (THEWILL) – Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki has relaxed the 24 hour curfew imposed on the state. It will now begin from 4pm and end at 6am.
The Governor also assured youths in the state of 60% representation in his new cabinet to resolve their grievances.
Obaseki made this known on Thursday during an interactive meeting with youth groups at the Government House, Benin.
He described the Edo protest as politically motivated, following its hijack by agents allegedly determined to cause political instability in the state.
Obaseki said “I am worried about the level of criminality. Part of the fight we had in our first term was the issue of maintaining law and order and fighting criminality. Lots of these criminals hid under the cover of the godfathers who called them their infantry, lions and tigers. You could see them in the last few days, the way they came out pouncing on people’s private properties.
“The crisis in Edo is not the #ENDSARS protests but political because the government supports the #ENDSARS protests. Just as we defeated them in the election, we will contain them. With my #ENDSARS people, we are going to arrest them and put them back to the zoo.”
“Without law and order, there can’t be economic growth because no investors will come here to invest.”
While commending the youths for his re-election, the Governor said his administration had plans to reward those under the age of 40 with 60% appointment in his second tenure.
He said his government had no problem with peaceful protests. “I asked the police to give you protection but the police authorities have a choice to either obey me or not. Our position as a government is to support the position of the #ENDSARS protesters because their demand is legitimate,” he said
Giving his assurance to the youths, Obaseki said “the Judicial Panel of Inquiry is the first step to go and we have instructed that the number of members be increased to 20 to accommodate other groups. The panel has 90 days and I urge you all to give evidence to the panel, which should be documented to enable us to implement its report.
“Our security arrangements in the country must reflect our federal system because I can’t be a governor of a state and not be able to hire and fire my Commissioner of Police. But the #ENDSARS has helped us start the process.”
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