Speaking on Sunday during a virtual parley with youths of
the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Amaechi said over-reliance on military
force to tackle insecurity without addressing economic deprivation only fuels
instability.

“Any leader who wants to resolve the issue of insecurity in
Nigeria will know that physical policing alone will not be the solution,” he
said.

“No matter how much you equip the police and the army, the
other people will continue to equip themselves to fight back against the state
actors.”

Amaechi said as governor of Rivers, his administration
enforced the law, built the capacity of security agencies, improved
inter-agency collaboration, and improved the social and economic well-being of
the people to curb insecurity.

“When we got in, we started building primary schools in
every village, constructing primary health care centres, and opening roads in
rural communities,” he said.

“But beyond that, we localised the contracts, meaning
contractors came from the same communities where the projects were sited.

“When you pay them, they pay their workers, and that money
circulates in the community. It created jobs, kept people busy, and reduced
crime.

“We created alternatives first, then policed the state.
People knew that if they got involved in banditry or kidnapping, they were
lawbreakers, not freedom fighters.

“You can’t police hunger. You build peace when people have
work, dignity, and faith in government.”