A retired Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Mr Desmond Agu, has cautioned against the merger of the corps with the police.
Agu said this when he spoke with newsmen on Thursday in Yenagoa, urging the Federal Government to shun lobbying for such a merger.
The former commandant said that such a merger would worsen the security situation in the country.
“The merger will worsen the security challenges in Nigeria because they are multifaceted, so coordinated, multiple approaches are needed to confront them and NSCDC has filled a significant part of that.
“It is obvious that persons seeking the merger are ignorant of the roles of NSCDC as a special purpose security vehicle.
“The NSCDC’s special roles of protecting and safeguarding critical national infrastructure and monitoring the activities of private security companies among others, will be undermined by such a merger,” he said.
Agu said that the government’s white paper on the Orosonya report recognised the special roles of NSCDC in the country.
He called for the strengthening of the corps to enhance its performance as an independent entity instead of merging it with other agencies.
“The NSCDC was created by the Constitution as a special vehicle to tackle unique and critical security challenges affecting mostly the national economy.
“The corps is designed to protect critical security infrastructure such as oil pipelines, electrical installations, among others.
“It is important to note that any attempt to merge NSCDC with the police will blur these critical roles and slow down the ongoing recovery of the economy.
“Those promoting this idea for whatever reason should jettison it because it will not do the country any good.
“Since its establishment, NSCDC has been professionally discharging its responsibilities, building public confidence in its activities. What the corps needs is better financing to keep performing its critical roles and not merger with the police,” he said.
The Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, had on Monday advised the federal government to merge the NSCDC and the Federal Road Safety Corps with the police for effectiveness.
Egbetokun said this at the National Dialogue on State Policing, organised by the House of Representatives on Monday in Abuja with the theme “Pathways to Peace: Reimagining Policing in Nigeria.”
The IGP represented by the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police, Mr Ben Okoro, said that the NSCDC and the FRSC were a duplication of the police.
Egbetokun also said that Nigeria was not ripe enough for state police urging those calling for state police to work toward merging the NCDSC and the FRSC with the police for effectiveness.
NAN
