CISLAC: Why The Safety And Protection Of Nigerians Is Difficult For Security Agencies? By Oluchi Ugboaja
At a one-day media workshop on Defence Anti-Corruption Reportage, Civic Space and Oversight organized by Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) recently held in Lagos, Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani), Executive Director, CISLAC, has beamed searchlight on key fundamental areas within defence and security sectors’ monetary process and expenditures and calls for effective investigative journalism on such areas.
The training, which is to improve the capacity of participants to understand porous areas of corruption breaches, urges the media to help minimize corrupt practices and improve Nigeria’s defence and security architecture by questioning some of unlawful dealings within the sector.
CISLAC is of the view that as patriotic citizens of this great nation, journalists should do everything possible within the law and ethics of the profession to make sure as provided in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to not watch the corrupt few embezzle money meant for the welfare of security personnel, procurement of security gadgets/facilities while insecurity is endangering the country.
Musa revealed that between 2015 to date, huge sums of money have been budgeted as security votes to enhance security in Nigeria, but sadly there have been more corruption in the security sector rather than enhancement or improvement after huge resources have been allocated for it.
The ED recalled that some arms, ammunition and other facilities are supposed to be provided for the police but according to him, “Till today the contractors. Government and police have been mute while police still lacks the enabling facilities to carry out their duty”.
“Also within the police, according to the auditor general reports, there are over 162 arms and ammunition that disappeared, where are those arms?”
There are infiltrations of not only small arms but heavy arms coming into Nigeria, how did these arms passed through the borders? Customs are in the major seaports, airports and land borders and heavy dangerous weapons are coming in.
“Looking at these huge allocation of money whether the extra budgeted through the normal process of the National Assembly and the ones that governors have as security votes, which also a large sum of money, one wonders why the safety and protection of Nigerians is difficult for Nigerians to move around safely in their own country?”
This shows that some people are not applying the budgetary allocation to security on equipment and facilities; which is more than money meant for health and educational sectors as well as other social services.
The army, navy, air force, customs or police have responsibility to ensure that our country is safe and protected’”.
The Executive Director also condemned the establishment of state security outfits introduced by some governors to curb insecurity in their regions. “Anything that is done outside constitutional provision and without public discussion to agree and disagree on it will definitely call for caution because currently we cannot afford to create illegal means of the so called creation of militias in the name of responding to insecurity. Invariably what we will doing is arming citizens who are not properly equipped, do not have the legal or constitutional mandates to carry out operations”.
He maintained that security personnel undergo intensive training not to talk of a militia group that would be formed, given arms, ammunition without proper training/skills to deal with issues of insecurity. They will misuse such kind of weapons for instance some politicians provide arms and ammunition to young people during election and after they are abandoned making these people that have those guns to use it for criminal activities.
“Security sector reforms must be carried out in the country to ensure efficiency, our security personnel are properly recruited, properly deployed, given the necessary incentives and their morale boosted that they will be able to carry out the work they were recruited for.
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