Governor Hope Uzodinma has signed two bills on security and land matters into law, as passed by the Imo House of Assembly.
Imo has become a hotbed of violence since Mr. Uzodinma assumed office.
The first was a bill for a law to establish the Imo State Security Organisation to assist in maintaining law and order in the state and related matters therein.
On May 1, Mr. Uzodinma had vowed to crush criminals in the state using “lawful machinery.”
The second bill established the Imo State Land Administration and Geographic Information Service to regulate land administration in the state and other related matters.
Mr. Uzodinma, in a statement by Oguwike Nwachukwu, his Chief Press Secretary, pointed out that “the two laws could not have come at a more auspicious time owing to the security challenges in Imo and Nigeria, generally.”
The governor said the bill was sent to the parliament to address the challenges of militancy, attacks on police formations, and politically influenced violence.
He added that the law would assist law enforcement agencies in maintaining law and order in the state.
According to him, the new law bans unauthorized persons from carrying firearms in Imo.
The governor further pointed out that the second law would address petitions and complaints about illegal land acquisition and sanitize land administrations in the state.
Earlier, the House of Assembly Speaker, Paul Emeziem, said the security law would support other laws in fishing out criminals and ending the spate of crimes.
He noted that the Imo Land Administration and Geographic Information Service, on its part, would support already existing whitepaper and gazettes on the recovery of fraudulently acquired lands and property.
(NAN)
