Chief invokes traditional power to curb kidnapping, other heinous crimes in Cross River

Etim Etim, Calabar

The Paramount Ruler of Calabar South local government area of Cross River State, Prof. Itam Hogan Itam, Nyam Nnankor 1 is considering invoking traditional power to curb kidnapping and other heinous crimes in the local government area. The consideration of traditional power came at the heels of kidnapping of season broadcaster, Mr Peter Etim a staff of Cross River State Broadcasting Corporation (CRBC) who was kidnapped about a month and some days and yet to be released. Speaking to DAILY TIMES, Prof Itam said, “We are working towards using traditional rituals to curb kidnapping but even then, we should not try to enforce those things on an unwilling people, let us work and get their corporation first and then with their corporation they may even join us to invoke those traditional powers. “So far, they have shown willingness to work with us, so when we invoke them, those of them who disobeyed can suffer the consequences, it will be their problems. Those things are not easy, when once we uttered it, it is difficult to called back, so we want to get their corporation first and their understanding, the implications of floating those injunction before, we can invoke them” he said. He explained that kidnapping has been a very vexed question, for about 2-3 years now, Calabar South, unfortunately has been the epee centre for all source of violence crimes. “We traditional rulers have been very very worried and we have been doing something. I will brief you on what we have been doing. Some of the things we have done so far, first, we have constituted committee of traditional rulers that is the Village Heads, Ndabos, Mukafo headed by Muri, His Royal Highness Muri Maurice Eyo to coordinate the activities and report back to me on weekly basis. “At the lower level, we have Village Vigilante, they will report to Muri at the end of every week and we at the Paramount Rulers level, we have gone into cooperation with the security forces, the Police, the DSS, the Customs, the Immigration and the DPOs and they have all pledged to support us. The Paramount Ruler said with this corporation included intelligence sharing, the local government would be ride off of kidnapping and heinous crimes, “You would also observed that, kidnapping in Calabar South and some other violence crimes are less now compare to what it was by this times last year. “This time for the past two months, we have seen much much less, it takes times to control crimes and we have been doing our best. We shall succeed, you know Calabar South is an international border local government area and we have boundary with Cameroon and it also an interstate border with Akwa Ibom, the creeks there are very difficult to navigate. Consequently, Prof Itam said “We also have some little problem of funds, the paramount rulers should be given some security votes, don’t expect them to be calling for a meeting and pursue these people, most of them are very violence children of ours, they can go to any length even to harm the traditional rulers, so we need security protection and we need some security fund so as to be able to do better. He regretted that for the past ten years the local government had no paramount ruler which may have been responsible for the high rates of crimes, “Now that Calabar South has got a traditional head which for the past 10 years have none, we are going to tackle this problem of kidnapping” he stated.