North Central director of Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) Mr Steve Aluko and the youth leader of Angwan Rukuba in Jos North LGA Samson Chiroma have raised alarm over the delay in the implementation of the presidential directive to immediately deploy over 5,000 artificial intelligence-enabled digital surveillance cameras to combat insecurity in Plateau State.
Tinubu gave the directive in April this year during a meeting with political and traditional leaders in Jos, following a deadly attack on Angwan Rukuba which claimed over 30 lives in the process.
Speaking in a separate interviews with LEADERSHIP on the implementation of security-related promises made by President Tinubu, Youth Leader of Anguwan Rukuba in Jos North LGA Samson Chiroma said after the president’s visit, “We have not gotten anything from the promises. We don’t have anything related to CCTV cameras presently as promised.”
Chiroma insisted that the only thing they got after the attacks and presidential directives is streetlights from the state Governor Barr Caleb Mutfwang.
Aluko in his reaction said the delay to install the CCTV cameras showed that the government is insensitive to the plight of ordinary citizens of the country.
According to him, if it is a government that values life, securing the lives and properties of its citizens will be its top priority.
Aluko insisted that the President said this should not repeat again, and as a measure to nip the menace in the bud, is to have the CCTV cameras installed .
“If after three weeks we have not seen the cameras mounted, it shows that it is not a priority to the government . We want to see presidential directive in actions.”
Aluko further stressed, “It is wrong for Mr. President to make a promise to the people that were traumatized and several months after the promise, we have not seen any action on the presidential directives.”
According to him, it further goes to shows that security has not been our priority in this country adding that the way “we manage every attack by terrorists is part of what has emboldened them to go to other places to carried out dastardly attacks.”
“If perpetrators of terrorism attack are dealt with, it serves as a deterrent to others. Governor Caleb Mutfwang of the state should rise up to the occasion to ensure CCTV cameras are installed in line with the presidential directive.”
Meanwhile, the State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Joyce Ramnap, while addressing the Federal Government’s promise of CCTV surveillance for Plateau on Channels Television explained that the project is ongoing and not abandoned.
She maintained that the systems are custom-built and require production and domestication to meet local Artificial Intelligence requirements for facial and threat recognition.
“We are working with the relevant federal agencies. These are not off-the-shelf cameras. They are being configured for our peculiar terrain and security needs,” she stated.
According to her, the installations will begin arriving hopefully by the end of the year.
