Counter-Insurgency: NSCDC Deploys Personnel on Liberated Communities

The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has deployed its personnel on some liberated communities and University of Maiduguri in Borno State.

The state Commandant of NSCDC, Ibrahim Abdullahi, made the disclosure during a visit by Senior Police Advisor United States Embassy, Mr. Michael Bonner, to the Command in Maiduguri.
Abdullahi said the command had recorded significant success towards providing civic protection in the state.

 He recalled that at the beginning of the Boko Haram insurgency, personnel of the command were not allowed to carry arms, noting that the trend did not deter them from their duties.
The NSCDC commandant said the command had recorded successes in various operations against the insurgents in the state.

 “We have arrested a lot of high profiled Boko Haram insurgents, their food and fuel suppliers; we also intercepted some cow rustlers and recovered a spiritual book which the insurgents used to hypnotise new recruits,” he said.

 Abdullahi added that the command had also resolved more than 15,000 cases under its dispute resolution exercise.
The commandant listed lack of patrol vehicles and obsolete equipment as some of the challenges facing the command.

He stressed the need to rehabilitate offices of the command vandalised by the Boko Haram insurgents in the 27 local government areas of the state.
Speaking during the visit, Bonner stated that the US would train and provide technical support for personnel of NSCDC to enhance its operations in the counter-terrorism campaign.

 Bonner said such support had become necessary in view of NSCDC’s contributions in promoting national security, especially in the protection of critical infrastructure.
“Absolutely, when you talk about safety and security in Nigeria, the primary concern is the Northeast, and the state that needs attention the most right now is Borno.

 “It is a great opportunity to meet NSCDC officers and hear from you how the US can assist you.
“We are also planning to train the NSCDC personnel on post-bomb blast investigation techniques.
“We have already put in place some courses that will run strictly for the NSCDC on critical infrastructure protection. The course is designed to train about 25 officers of the NSCDC who will also train other officers of the command,” he stated.

 According to him, we are also looking at providing a joint training for the NSCDC and the Nigeria Police Force.
“The training includes counter-terrorism techniques to enable you identify potential threats and protect people in soft targets as well as prevent terror attack,” Bonner said.