YEAC -Nigeria commends President Tinubu on proposed ECOWAS standby force 

Stanley Ihedigbo

Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) , has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Chairman of Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), for his  proposed regional standby force.

According to the Executive Director, YEAC-Nigeria, Com. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, the ECOWAS Standby Force proposed by President Tinubu, at the 65th meeting of Heads of State in Abuja was  inline with their proposal for a ‘Taskforce on Organized Crime in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea (TAOCINAG)”, as contained in the communique issued at the end of the National Conference on Organized Crime in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea (NACOCINAG) held in April 2023 and submitted to the  President  in September 2023 for implementation.

He noted that President Tinubu, was reelected Chairman of the regional body and  in his speech at the event, he called on Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS to work towards the establishment of a regional standby force for the security and economic advancement of the community”

Fyneface further commended  ECOWAS leader for taking steps to implement yet another proposal that he made to the government and those in the region to address security, economic sabotage and organized crime issues in Nigeria, the Gulf of Guinea and the West African subregion after he previously directed the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, in August 2023 to review one of its proposal for the possible innovation, modernization, legalization and integration of artisanal refineries into the national economy to mitigate organized crime and crude oil theft called “Presidential Artisanal Crude Oil Refining Development Initiative (PACORDI)”.

Fyneface thanked Mr. President for  calling for the idea less than one year after it was submitted to him.

He appealed to ECOWAS Member States to give the proposal an expedited consideration and approval to address issues of organized crime in the subregion.

“With President Tinubu’s listening ears to groundbreaking initiatives and viable proposals from us,  the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) capable of contributing to addressing our problems and mitigating organized crimes, I am encouraged to develop and generate more ideas because I know that the federal government under President Bola Tinubu would implement them for our common good and benefits”,  Fyneface stressed.