A maritime expert, Dr Kayode Farinto, has stressed the need for the automation of Nigeria’s security architecture in fighting crime against the normal practice of providing security votes.
Farinto, the former acting National President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos.
BRANDPOWER reports that security votes is a monthly allowance that is allocated to the 36 states within the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the sole purpose of funding security services within such states.
Farinto said this while reacting to 2024 Appropriation Bill presented on Wednesday by President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly.
According to him, Nigeria should embrace automation and jettison security votes by deployment of drones to monitor key areas.
“Look at how the Israeli is fighting the war, it’s more of drones, looking at areas that there are skirmishes. We should not look at the issue of security vote now as someone will sit on the money.
“Let us automate our security architecture, it will go a long way in helping Nigeria because the country is too big and large.
“The only way we can man our security properly is by deploying drones, there should be a drone station in states, monitored through the states commissioner of police, centralised in Abuja and the Inspector General of Police can see what is happening there.
“This will make our security architecture to be very good and proactive. It is not about voting money but spending it in the right place, particularly in the area of automation,” he said.
On job creation, Farinto noted that the establishment of new ministries and proper implementation of some initiatives announced by the Federal Government would to tackle unemployment in the country.
He added that imbibing the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement as being disclosed in the Appropriation Bill would boost employment.
“Taking us back to the era of former military President of Nigeria, Ibrahim Babangida, who preached self reliant, youths should be creative on their own as government is not ready to give our youths money, they should be creative.
“The most important thing is the ability to execute the budget as the president wants it,” he said.
On investing private capital for big-ticket infrastructure projects in transportation, Farinto urged government to venture into the tourism aspect of the blue economy.
According to him, the president has actually set the pace by creating the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. All government needs to do now is the PPP arrangement they are bringing onboard.
“The PPP arrangement is better for Nigeria. This is because anything holistically owned by government, their is this lackadaisical attitude and let us steal it syndrome that is always there.
“I was in UK few days ago and wanted to fly to Italy, but there is this vessel that is for holiday, it moved tourists to Italy and toured them round Italy.
“While on the move, one still remains in their room within that bunker and one is charged everyday spent and everything is being incorporated.
“The only way they could do this was through the PPP arrangement. When you look at the cost of the vessel, its €4million and if anybody is bringing this amount, government gives legal backing,” he said.
He noted that if such is brought to Nigeria, before we know it our tourism industry would grow.
“Such vessel can come move to Republic of Benin or even Lome on sight seeing and this will be a source of revenue for the country,” he said.
He noted that the Tinubu government was starting on a very good note, adding that there were things in the pipeline that needed private sector to be involved, but they were afraid due to lack of legal backing.
“In the budget, there should be legal framework for the PPP arrangement to thrive.It will save government from unnecessary spending,” he said.
