National Taskforce on Recovery of Prohibited Importation/Smuggling of Small Arms, Ammunition and Light Weapons, NATFORCE, has increased the tenure of its Director General, Dr. Osita Okereke by another five year following the expiration of his first term in office.
Similarly, the National Executive Council, NEC of the association, has approved tenure elongation for Okereke as the National President of Importers Association of Nigeria, IMAN.
The tenure elongation was the major decision reached at the NEC meeting of the two bodies held yesterday in Abuja.
This is even as the NATFORCE sought the full support of the federal government in assisting the security agencies to halt the activities of criminals in the country, especially the now dreaded Abuja-Kaduna road.
In a communique issued at the end of the meeting and made available to our correspondent, the NEC explained that it took the decision “following the towering achievements recorded by Okereke within the period under review in addition to his dogged efforts to ensure that our Bill on National Commission on NATFORCE awaiting passage on the floor of the Senate succeeds”.
The communique, signed by the NEC members from across the country, said Okereke should continue to take charge and manage the affairs of IMAN as National President and Director General of NATFORCE for the next five years with effect from Wednesday, May 15, 2019.
It stressed that “in view of the travails suffered by Chief Okereke in the hands of the Nigeria Police in the course of securing the legitimacy of our association and NATFORCE, NEC has passed a vote of confidence on him and mandated him to continue to manage the affairs of IMAN and NATFORCE for the next five (5) years with effect from 15th of May 2019”.
“NEC wishes to inform the general public to disregard publications by one Mr. Chijioke Okoro, who described as a ‘self-made ambassador and acting director general of the Taskforce and all those sponsoring him to destabilize the association and NATFORCE.
“The Council recognizes Chief (Dr.) Osita Emmanuel Okereke as National President of IMAN and DG NATFORCE in line with the judgement of the Appeal Court on February.
“We are mandating the NATFORCE to flag-off operations in the 36 states of the federation and Abuja and join other security agencies to curb the increasing security challenges in various parts of the country”, it stated.
The NEC thanked the Acting Inspector General of Police, Mr. Muhammad Adamu for renewing the agency’s signal and appealed for adequate support of all the Police Commands in the 36 states and Abuja for NATFORCE with a view to getting rid of kidnappers, banditry and other forms of crimes against the nation.
It, however, informed the IGP of “an illegal body which operates as IMAN Special Taskforce that is being sponsored by a group of terrorists that is striving to destroy and hijack NATFORCE and sabotage our effort to rid Nigeria of all forms of criminalities”.
