SW Governor assures population of security during end-of-year festivities.

The meeting held in Tiko Tuesday November 26. It provided an opportunity for stakeholders to take stock of the region's security, economic and socio-cultural developments in the last six months.

It was attended by the six Senior Divisional Officers, SDOs, of the region, top brass of the defense and security forces, several Members of Parliament, traditional authorities, community leaders, religious and other civil leaders among others.

In his introductory remarks, the Okalia Bilai highlighted the importance of the meeting in enabling technical governmental departments to present their activity log to the population of the region. 

Various regional delegates and heads of other state deconcentrated services took turns to present the level of implementation of their activities.

Regional technical services like customs and taxation were praised for their role in revenue collection, which witnessed a huge bump.

Such rise in the revenue mobilised by the said sectors, according to the Governor, was a signal of a return to normalcy in region. 

However, the Governor frowned at the performance of contractors, warning that contractors failing to deliver projects on time and satisfactorily would face legal consequences. 

The Governor pressed the Regional Delegation of Public Contracts to intensify their work in improving the road network in the region.

He cited the Kumba-Ekondo-Titi-Mundemba Road, Nfeitok-Mamfe, and Bangem-Nguti roads amongst other national and regional roads in the region.

SDOs urged to fight absenteeism

Addressing SDOs during the meeting, Governor Okalia Bilai urged them to maintain zero tolerance for absenteeism and ghost civil servants in their areas of command. 

He urged them to intensify the fight against the absenteeism of civil servants to ensure that the population in all the six divisions benefit from all the services provided by the state.

He further encouraged SDOs to pay attention to what is programmed in the budgets by local councils to ensure projects meet the needs of the local population. 

The budgets, he said, should prioritise projects touching on the wellbeing of the denizens by focusing on providing basic services needs by the people.

He frowned at the numerous chieftaincy challenges propping up in most parts of the region that threaten peace and social cohesion “in our society because of blatant intervention of administrative officials against the customs and traditions of the people and the law”.

In this light, he challenged them to maintain neutrality in the designation of traditional rulers in the region and respect the laws and customs of the people.

Normalcy returning to education sector

In the domain of education, the Governor commended stakeholders; students, parents, and Parent Teacher Associations for their contributions to the region’s satisfactory examination results. 

He also saluted the fact that the 2024/2025 academic year was ongoing hitch free throughout the region. 

The increase performance, enrolment of more students, reopening of schools in more rural areas was a testament to the fact that normalcy was returning to the sector

Despite the positive picture, he registered his frustrations that some schools are still facing challenges due to teacher absenteeism and that some schools are not functioning with others functional schools recording poor results because some teachers posted in those areas prefer to remain in the urban areas to engage in business.

Security situation still challenging

The Governor expressed reservations about the security situation in the region, citing the kidnapping of the Divisional Officer, DO, of Idabato and a council staff, who are still under captivity and subjected to inhumane conditions. 

He also referenced the killing of three young police officers at the Bwitigi Police Post on the night of August 24 to 25, 2024, as well as a similar incident that occurred in Malende, Muyuka Subdivision few days prior.

He also raised concerns about the alarming rise in the use and trafficking of hard drugs in the region as a major preoccupation. 

On a worrying note, he noted that the issue of drugs remained a major challenge because some security personnel are reportedly complicit in the said activities. 

He promised that the issue would be given urgent attention, especially during the upcoming festive season to protect the population.

Despite the security worries, the Governor applauded the defense and security forces for their efforts in combating separatists and other criminal gangs and networks in the region. 

To succeed, he urged them to build stronger trust with the population to foster lasting peace.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3305 of Friday November 29, 2024