By Our Reporter
Federal Government is set to deploy 7,000 forest guards in seven pilot states, saying that the newly trained guards would be deployed immediately to all the beleaguered communities in the highlighted states, particularly around forested and ungoverned spaces in the country.Ribadu said.
National Security Adviser (NSA), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, made this known Saturday in Yola, the Adamawa State Capital at a graduation ceremony of the guards who had been in training.
"We are fully aware of Nigerians’ concerns about insecurity across the country. Accordingly, the newly trained Forest Guards will be deployed immediately to all the beleaguered communities in the highlighted states, particularly around forested and ungoverned spaces," Ribadu said.
Ribadu explained that the guards were expected to gather actionable human intelligence, support ongoing security operations, and restore state presence where it had long been absent.
According to him, the trainees underwent extensive physical and mental conditioning, including endurance exercises, obstacle-crossing drills, and long-range patrol simulations to prepare them for sustained forest operations, saying that they reached the stage of graduation after they completed an intensive three-month training programme in the seven pilot states of Adamawa, Bomo, Kwara, Kebbi, Niger, Sokoto, and Yobe.
Ribadu recalled that the trainees were mobilised under the Presidential Forest Guards initiative, launched by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in May this year as a joint effort between the Federal and state governments.
He further disclosed that the training instructors and coordinators were drawn from the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDS), the National Park Service, and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).
He said the mandate of the Forest Guards was essentially to tackle bandits, insurgents, terrorists, and other criminal elements that were exploiting Nigeria’s vast, ungoverned forest spaces.
The NSA said the pilot phase of the forest guards rollout provided a solid foundation for a nationwide deployment after more guards are accordingly recruited.
“As we speak, processes have commenced to train new batches across additional states, ensuring rapid expansion and comprehensive national coverage," Ribadu said.
The Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri, in his own remark, enjoined the forest guards to see heir assignment as a call to service, saying that they were to treat residents with civility.
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