By Suleiman Adamu, Sokoto
The Sokoto state government has said that the initiative to establish Community Guards Corps is to drive a responsive and purposely complementing security measures against crimes and not as alternative or substitute to the conventional security system operations.
The Committee Chairman for the establishment of the corps, Alhaji Yusha’u Muhammad Ahmed Kebbe said on Thursday in Sokoto shortly after the formal signing of the Bill into law by Governor Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto who reiterated to secure Sokoto state against the menace of insecurity occasioned by banditry.
Aliyu Sokoto who vowed to make Sokoto state a crime free state ask sought the cooperation of security forces whom he urged to embrace the initiative while adding ” Sokoto will no longer be attractive to nor a hiding place for bandits, cattle rustlers and kidnappers.
” We have put all the necessary mechanisms in place and therefore, all hands must be on deck in providing security for our people whose support is also needed to achieve the desired results”, he maintained.
Meanwhile, Ahmed Kebbe said the essence of the corps was to actively complement the efforts and strengthen the capacity of the Joint Military and Police including NSCDC operations to curb insecurity in the state.
According to Kebbe who was one time governorship candidate in the state” the guard corps will be trained and guided by the conventional military and police security forces operating across the state.
” The newly recruited guards corps who mostly are drawn from the local vigilante members will assist in giving and updating security forces with intelligence having knowing every nook and crannies about the their communities and terrains.
” We are confident that they will surely assist our forces in both Kinetic and non kinetic approach to securing our dear state”, he explained .
Kebbe added” with this development , we are expecting to see improvement in tackling security challenges head on.
” Though, it is interesting to say that the strategy is to discourage reactive operations and boost proactive approach against banditry , kidnapping and other sundry crimes”, he said
While noting that conventional security operations was not enough, the guard Corps Committee Chairman disclosed that the recruitment of the guards had started yielding fruitful results as significant improvement in security situation of the state was fast encouraging.
” The state government with the active participation of security forces will continue to give comprehensive training and guidance to the guards as well certify and assess their mental , psychological, physical, human relations and religious guidance in the course of discharging their duties of complementing security forces”, he explained.
However, Kebbe added” we will also give priority to engaging religious leaders , Village and District Heads. No fewer than 2,000 of the recruited guards will be deployed across communities in the 23 LGAs.
” We have taken into cognisance the importance of paying attention to how they will use defence tools to be given to them inorder to control misuse against accidental discharge”, he stressed.