Drug Abuse As A Precursor To Alarming Increase In Crimes: CISLAC /TI-NIGERIA Trains Community Leaders, CSOs On EWER Security Architecture Dialogue

A communiue issued at the end of a one day training By:
CISLAC/TI-Nigeria with support from Open Society Foundation Africa (OSF-Africa) On Community Security Architecture Dialogue on Early Warning and Early Response. The Dialogue aimed at strengthening local participation and expand community-based early warning and early response network and system. It brought under one roof, a selection of Traditional Rulers, Community Observers, members of the Security Actor, Civil Society and the Media to analyse early warning information and coordinate response efforts. There was an “Opening Remark” from the Executive Director of CISLAC, Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani). The Dialogue had a technical session with Presentation titled “CSAD: A Critical Reflection from Previous Engagement” and “Stakeholders and their Roles in Strengthening Community Based Early Warning/Early Response”. It was attended by over 30 participants. After brainstorming exhaustively on various thematic issues, the following observations and recommendations were made:
OBSERVATIONS:
The increasing cases of drug and substance abuse coupled with general rise in cost of living has exacerbated the cost of rehabilitation and community financial incapacitation to mitigate the impact, hence the need for proactive policy measures towards prevention.

Growing effort at community levels in Rivers towards the adoption of Community Policing system through enhanced collaboration with local vigilante groups, to monitor, report signals and response to threat.

Inadequate resource allocation to response institutions hampers adequate, coordinated and efficient response to reported threat signals.

Lack accountability of public accountability at sub-national constitutes a potential challenge to the effective implementation of the recently promulgated Local Government financial autonomy to operationalise Community Security Architecture.

RECOMMENDATIONS:
We the participants recommended as follows:
Immediate passage of adequate legal framework to prevent and mitigate influence of illicit and substance abuse in Rivers state, while accelerating community-based approach to reporting related signals.

Maintaining sanity in the society through targeted and coordinated policy measures that discourage the activities of unscrupulous elements, who are prevented by political realm from justice and accountability.

Embracing Community Policing system at community levels, to complement effort by response institutions, secure local participation, and enhance community-driven initiatives towards sustainable Early Warning/Early Response.

Building trust and synergy between community and response institutions to enhance intelligence gathering, strengthen collaboration and cooperation, while encouraging timely reporting and adequate response to threat signals.

Adequate resource allocation to response institutions and Community Security Architecture at sub-national levels leveraging Security Vote to complement shortage from the national allocation, to enhance efficient response threat.

Strengthening policy support for Community Security Architecture in the areas of intelligence gathering and information sharing, to complement response at institutional levels.

Adequate training and retraining programmes for vigilante groups, NDLEA, Neighbourhood Watch and related formations to clarify responsibility, assess needs, address concerns and build capacity of members on human rights and cooperation.

Creation of community funded Trust Fund to facilitate and support efficient operation of the vigilante groups, while complementing the effort of conventional institutions.

Enhancing inter-agency synergy to strengthen collaboration, cooperation, communication, coordination, and enhance response to threat signals.

Creation of communication platform to connect the community with response institutions to facilitate timely reporting of threat signal, while eliciting rapid response.

Strengthening moral and value at individual levels through training and retraining programmes for the youth on social value and positive character development.

Promoting community sensitisation on conflict-sensitivity through massive media engagements and domesticated Civil Society advocacy activities.

Creation of EWER Situation Room with active collaboration with Civil Society platforms to improve intelligence gathering and coordination among response agencies, while ensuring data secrecy of a whistle-blower.

Highlighting the criticality of adequate funding for Community Security Architecture while strengthening sub-national demands for transparency of the implementation of financial autonomy by Local Governments, to ensure accountability and maximise impact.
Signed:
Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani)
Executive Director, CISLAC/TI-Nigeria