By Isaac Mission 

Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has praised youths across the state for publicly demonstrating their opposition to terrorism, cultism and other forms of criminality.

Mbah gave the commendation at the Enugu State Government House after receiving a large group of youths who staged a solidarity march in support of ongoing security efforts by both the Federal Government and the Enugu State Government.

The march, which involved Enugu youths, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and students from tertiary institutions, took participants through major streets in the state capital before they converged at the Government House.

During the procession, the youths displayed placards and chanted messages calling for collective action against insecurity, violent extremism and criminal activities.

Some of the messages urged residents to unite against terrorism, remain vigilant and protect their communities, while others emphasised the importance of unity in defeating violent extremism.

Receiving the protesters, Governor Mbah said security had remained one of the major priorities of his administration because of its importance to the state's economic and social development.

He described the youths' decision to take the anti-crime message to the streets as significant, noting that young people should not remain passive observers in the fight against insecurity.

According to the governor, the demonstration showed that young people were prepared to take responsibility for building a safer society rather than allowing criminal elements to determine the future of their communities.

Mbah said his administration would continue to engage young people in the campaign against crime and violent extremism. He added that a stronger youth-led movement against criminality could help reduce crime and allow more resources to be directed towards employment creation and poverty reduction.

The governor further argued that if young Nigerians consistently rejected criminal activities, the need for correctional facilities would eventually decline significantly.

He said behavioural change among young people was essential to achieving lasting security, stressing that residents must take ownership of the campaign against crime.

Mbah also reaffirmed the state's zero-tolerance stance on criminality, saying improved security would create a more attractive environment for investors and contribute to broader economic growth.

He encouraged the youths to extend the campaign to communities across Enugu State and make it clear that crime and terrorism have no place in the aspirations of young Nigerians.

The governor also assured the group that the government would complement their efforts through non-kinetic measures, including employment opportunities, improved education and digital skills development.

Earlier, the Deputy Rector of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu, Dr. Emeka Ejim, described the march as a broad-based youth initiative involving students and corps members united against crime, cultism and terrorism.

Ejim pledged the group's continued support for the state's security initiatives and said young people would not allow themselves to be recruited into criminal or extremist organisations.

Also speaking, the Enugu State leader of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Kelvin Okeke, said the association was prepared to mobilise up to two million youths for the campaign against violence and terrorism.

Okeke commended the state government's investment in security infrastructure, including the Command and Control Centre, Centre for DNA Forensics and Criminal Investigation and the Distress Response Squad.

He said the measures were contributing to improved security across the state.

Meanwhile, NYSC members who participated in the march shared positive experiences about security in Enugu.

One of them, Olaranju Oreose, said he initially had concerns about travelling from the South-West to Enugu for his service year but had since developed confidence in the security situation in the state.

The corps members reaffirmed their rejection of terrorism and expressed appreciation for the peaceful environment they said they had experienced in Enugu.