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Tag: Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC)

  • Looming flood: NSCDC warns Edo residents relocate to safer grounds

    Looming flood: NSCDC warns Edo residents relocate to safer grounds

    Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has called on Edo residents, particularly those living in low-lying areas, to relocate to safer grounds, considering the looming risk of severe flooding.

    According to a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the State Commandant of NSCDC, Mr Gbenga Agun, issued the warning in a statement issued by the command’s Spokesman, Efosa Ogbebor.

    According to the statement, Agun said the warning followed a prediction by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) that heavy rainfall and flooding would persist through September and possibly into October.

    “We are calling on all the residents in flood-prone areas to take precautionary measures and relocate while there’s still time.

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    “It is better to act now than wait until lives and property are lost,” he said.

    The commandant described the alert as a necessary move to mitigate the effects of natural disaster in the state and emphasised the need for urgent sensitisation in vulnerable communities.

    “This warning has become imperative, considering the frequency and intensity of rains recorded so far in July.

    “This situation demands urgent attention, and we must take sensitisation to the doorsteps of communities at risk,” Agun said.

  • NSCDC raids illegal mining sites in Anambra

    NSCDC raids illegal mining sites in Anambra

    Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Anambra State Command, has raided illegal sand mining sites at Omambala River, Ifite-Ogwari Local Government Area.

    Commandant, Maku Olatunde, said at the command’s headquarters, Awka, the state capital that the operation was conducted by the Mines and Steel  Development Unit (MSD) of the command, in collaboration with the new state Federal Mines Officer; Edet Anthony Oku.

    He said during the raid the suspected illegal miners fled, leaving behind some of their equipment.

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    The NSCDC operatives recovered one dredger, two dredging engine pumps, 18 drums, five suction pipes, eight plastic discharge pipes, three jerrycans (25L), one plastic bucket and one funnel.

    Maku added the site with a licenced mining title reportedly held by Ike Nweke of Messrs. Trillike Investment Limited had been overtaken by unauthorised miners allegedly led by one Mr. Uche Joshua Okafor.

    He said they would seal the illegal mining sites and facilitate the lawful operations of verified title holders.

  • Operation Crush member dies in accident

    Operation Crush member dies in accident

    An officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) attached to Operation Crush in Abia State died on Sunday and several others when their vehicle had an accident at Ihie Ibeku on Bende Road in Umuahia, the state capital.

    The accident, which happened in the evening, left three security personnel missing, while rescue efforts continued at the scene.

    According to eyewitnesses, the vehicle carrying the operatives veered off the road and plunged into a ditch.

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    The road, known for its narrow and challenging topography, is part of the federal highway linking the state capital to Bende, Ohafia, Arochukwu and other parts of the state.

    However, six operatives were rescued and taken to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Umuahia for treatment.

    Meanwhile, one of the members of “Operation Crush”, who was declared missing, has been found alive.

  • Kwara NSCDC rescues female undergrad from ritualists

    Kwara NSCDC rescues female undergrad from ritualists

    Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Kwara State Command has rescued a 400-level student of Kogi State University, Ayingba allegedly kidnapped by ritualists.

    The state Commandant of NSCDC, Dr Umar Mohammed, said the 19-year-old English Education undergraduate, Fauziyah Mohammed, was hypnotised in Kogi and dumped in Ilorin, Kwara State capital.

    Mohammed added that the victim was discovered by the residents of Ajegunle-Isale community on the Egbejila Road in Ilorin.

    According to the commandant, she was wandering about in the community naked when “the residents seized and handed her over to the NSCDC Officer, Afolayan.

    He explained that Fauziyah is not coherent in speech, suggesting horrible experiences while with the kidnappers.

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    He added: “We, as a command, have tried to comfort her and provided her with clothings as well as briefed the governor of her plight.

    “Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has promised to assist us to return her to Kogi tomorrow.’’

    On interrogation, Fauziyah said she did not know how she got to Kwara State from Kögi State, but recalled: “One of the books I carried dropped and as I made to pick it up, I lost consciousness.”

    The command is set to release her to one Mallam Salihu Aliu who claimed to be her uncle delegated by the family to act on their behalf.

    Meanwhile, the command has paraded one Abu Usman Soja, an informant of kidnappers in Ajase-Ipo area of the state.

    The command said his accomplices, now on the run, kidnapped a woman and her two children on November 7 and demanded N50 million ransom but later reduced it to N15 million, adding that the mother

  • IGP faults police, NSCDC faceoff in Osun

    IGP faults police, NSCDC faceoff in Osun

    The Inspector – General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun, on Sunday expressed anger over the confrontation between police officers and operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

    It was learnt that an NSCDC officer, identified simply as Owoeye, was reportedly assaulted while on guard duty in an estate and subsequently detained by the police.

    The incident was said to have caused an arguement between Osun Command of the NSCDC and the Nigeria Police Force.

    The Osun State government later held a meeting with security heads to resolve the rift.

    However, the IGP in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, OluMuyiwa Adejobi, described the confrontation as unprofessional and directed the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 11, Osogbo, to conduct a discreet investigation into the root cause of the incident.

    Adejobi said: “The Inspector-General of Police expresses displeasure at the act of unprofessionalism and public display of division and has ordered the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 11, Osogbo, to conduct a discreet investigation into the root cause of the confrontation.

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    “It is pertinent to recall that in a press statement from the NPF, Ref No. CZ.5300/FPRD/FHQ/ABJ/VOL.6/257 dated 15th October 2023, IGP Holds Strategic Conference with Senior Police Officers, Emphasises Professionalism and Camaraderie, the IGP stressed the core importance of synergy for efficiency and productivity among security operatives, stating, ‘At this moment, I must stress the importance of esprit de corps – the spirit of camaraderie, teamwork, and shared purpose that binds us within our organisation and with our colleagues across other agencies. It is essential for the successful execution of our duties that we honour and respect all colleagues and members of other services within the confines of the law.

    “The IGP, however, calls for calm, as the Nigeria Police Force under his leadership will continually work in collaboration with relevant sister security agencies to ensure a safe and secure environment for our dear country, Nigeria”.

  • One-month after LADOL Free Zone’s Shooting Incident – What lessons have been learnt?

    May 8, 2019 marked one month since the murder of an operative of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and a Korean employee of SHI-MCI by NSCDC personnel guarding the LADOL Free Zone in Lagos.

    The facts of the shooting were widely reported by the Nigerian media at the time. LADOL responded to the shooting by falsely claiming in a press statement issued on April 18 that the shooting was in error, despite CCTV and eye-witness accounts demonstrating that the shooting was deliberate.

    The remains of the Korean employee have since been repatriated to Korea, accompanied by members of his family. The gunman remains in police custody and will be prosecuted for his terrible crimes. Nigerian and Korean workers have bravely returned to the SHI-MCI fabrication yard for work.

    However, operators and investors have continued to ask the zone administrator, a LADOL subsidiary called GRMFZC, questions about what has been done to improve security at the free zone to prevent the reoccurrence of the ugly incident.

    It was gathered that after the shooting, the Nigerian Exporting Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA) Zone Administrator for the LADOL Free Zone called for a meeting of representatives of all government agencies, Free-Zone enterprises and the NSCDC to discuss the issues raised by the shooting incident and to identify what lessons that could be learnt.

    Unfortunately, LADOL does not seem to have learnt any lessons from this accident as the company has not taken any proactive steps to respond to this incident.  For instance, the Chief Security Officer at the LADOL Free Zone has remained in his post. Secondly, there has been no direct apology or offer of compensation from LADOL to the families of the victims.

    In fact, LADOL has not even accepted that this shooting by the NSCDC operative was deliberate. The company has also continued to disregard and neglect its responsibility as a zone manager of the LADOL Free Zone.

    Before the shooting incident, SHI-MCI had previously argued that armed guards were unnecessary and presented risk to Korean and Nigerian employees and to the guards themselves. But despite the protest, the condition of armed guards was imposed by LADOL.

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    The LADOL shooting has destroyed the aspiration that Free Zones are supposed to be safe-havens for industrial and individual safety and harmony.

    SHI-MCI’s concerns about safety at the yard are genuine. Some of the workers at the yard were foreign workers that expected to be able to work safely in Nigeria. If LADOL refuses to rectify mistakes from the past, risks to workers in the LADOL Free Zone remain real.

    The good news is that NEPZA has now urged a review and overhaul of security in the LADOL Free Zone to reduce the likelihood of a shooting happening again. It has also recommended that it, as the regulatory authority, will investigate who might be directly or indirectly responsible for the incident and impose appropriate sanctions.

    NEPZA’s intervention may provide a path to justice for the families of the victims.

    • Akpan-Etukudo, an investment advisor, writes from Warri

     

  • S/Court affirms recall of 181 sacked personnel of NSCDC

    The Supreme Court has affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal, Abuja that recalled 181 sacked personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

    Delivering judgment on Monday, the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Tanko Muhammad struck out the appeal filed by the corps challenging the decision of the lower court.

    The acting CJN, who led four other justices, held that the apex court lacked that jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

    He said that Section 248 (4) of the 1999 Constitution as amended placed all legal disputes which emanated from the National Industrial Court (NIC) to terminate at the court of appeal.

    Mahammad further said that that apex court was therefore not vested with the jurisdiction to entertain such appeals.

    “In the circumstance, the appellant applicant has reached its limit and the appeal is therefore struck out.

    “The matter has come to its finality’’, he said.

    The lost appeal was filed by NSCDC against the judgment by the National Industrial Court (NIC), reinstating 182 of its personnel who were wrongly dismissed.

    NIC had, in a judgment on March 19, 2015, ordered the NSCDC to reinstate the sacked staff with their full emoluments from the time they were illegally dismissed.

    The trial court also ordered NSCDC to return the employment letters to the affected personnel and pay all arrears of their salaries amounting to about N1.2 billion.

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    The court restrained the NSCDC from further tampering with the employment of the affected personnel.

    Dissatisfied with the judgment, the NSCDC, and Immigration and Prisons Service Board (who were respondents at the NIC) appealed the judgment, but failed to diligently prosecute it.

    A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Moore Adumein, in a ruling, on July 18, 2016, upheld the respondents’ request and dismissed the appeal for lack of diligent prosecution.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Obono Musa and 180 others had sued the then Commandant-General, NSCDC, alleging unlawful termination of their employments.

    They prayed the court to declare that the verbal and oral suspension of the claimants by the NSCDC was null, void and of no effect.

    The claimants also sought an order directing the defendants to recall all the claimants to work and to also release the original copies of their letters of employment to them.

    They also asked for an order of the court directing the defendants to immediately pay them all arrears of salaries from 2007 till date.

    Speaking to newsmen after the court session, Mr Ibrahim Bawa, Counsel to the respondents expressed delight on the outcome of the case, adding that his clients had been exposed to hardship since 2007 when they were unlawfully sacked.

    He therefore urged President Muhammadu Buhari to impress it on the Commandant-General of the corps to without delay effect the decision of the apex court.

    Bawa also said that the president might contemplate investigating the untidy manner the establishment was managed.

    NAN further reports that the 181 personnel of the corps were seen dancing and thanking God for their legal victory in the premises of the court.

    NAN

     

  • We didn’t kill any suspect in Ondo, says NSCDC

    THE Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ondo State Command, has refuted the claim that it killed a suspect, Rasak Ahmed, in its custody.

    The deceased was allegedly arrested for having carnal knowledge of his eight-year-old daughter in Akure, the state capital.

    Its Public Relations Officer (PRO), Samuel Oladapo, said the command decided to react after it was reported in some national dailies that the command allegedly beat Ahmed, a middle-aged man, to death in its custody.

    Oladapo said the suspect was arrested on Sunday following a complaint by his son, Ibrahim, that his father was having intercourse with his sister.

    He said: “The suspect was arrested by our men at our out-post station and brought to the state headquarters on Monday for proper investigations.

    “And during our investigation, Ahmed confessed to the offence and attributed it to devil’s work.

    “Before he was detained in the cell, he was complaining and begging that he should be allowed to put on his ‘buba’ and ‘sokoto’ because he had cold, which we obliged.

    “Meanwhile, he was brought to the headquarters around 6pm and surprisingly, when one of our men approached his cell to deliver food brought by one of his relatives, he was found dangling on iron door of the cell being a short man, having torn his cloth to hang himself.

    “It was unfortunate that he was the only inmate in the cell which made it easy for him to carry out the dastardly act,” he stated.

    He added: “NSCDC is civil and does not torture suspect, let alone killing a suspect. The moto of NSCDC is civil. We do not torture because it has not been our tradition and it is against our mandate.”

    The PRO noted that the corpse had been deposited in a government hospital for autopsy, saying that police had commenced their investigation to confirm the cause of the suspect’s death.

    He, therefore, urged members of the public to disregard the report, stressing that this was not the first time that the command would be handling incest cases.

  • Security: Police propose joint training with NSCDC

    The Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Muhammed Adamu, has called for joint training between the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to ensure synergy during security operations.

    According to the The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Adamu made the proposal during a courtesy visit to his office on Saturday in Abuja by NSCDC Commandant General, Abdullahi Gana.

    The IGP assured that the force would continue to ensure that the purpose of policing the country was achieved.

    He commended the leadership of the NSCDC for its resilience in ensuring that the 2019 general elections turned out peaceful.

    Earlier, Gana said the collaboration with the police, being the head security agency, would help reduce the rate of crime and criminal tendencies in the country.

    He pledged the corps’ commitment towards a united Nigeria, noting that officials of the NSCDC would leave no stone unturned to achieved the needed peace in the country. (NAN)

  • 44 policemen in auto crash in Abuja

    The Nigeria Police Force has confirmed 44 of its operatives were involved in autocrash on Friday while they were on their way for election duties.

    According to the Police, the accident occurred in Gwagwalada Area Council of Abuja.

    The injured personnel attached to the Operations department of the FCT Police Command were being conveyed in one of the big Police trucks when the accident occurred.

    The police said 36 of them were immediately rushed to Air force Base hospital, six to Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) hospital while two were rushed to Police hospital in Area 1, Garki for treatment.

    33 out of the 44 injured were treated and discharged while 11 are presently on admission at various hospitals in Abuja.

    Some of the personnel injured are: Inspector Luka Hananiya, Sergeant Shettima Solomon, Inspector Maude Yusuf, Sergeant Musa Dahiru and Inspector Mumini Mohammed.

    Speaking after a visit to some of the injured Police officers in the hospital, the Inspector General of Police, Ag. IGP Mohammed Adamu, said: “It is because of the election that we decided to deploy our men to polling units.

    “On their way, a team that was deployed to Gwagwalada had an accident and a lot of them were seriously injured.

    “You can see that we are at the trauma section of the National hospital where some of them are admitted.

    “They have various degrees of injury, ranging from fracture to head injury that requires further investigation which I have ordered that they be taken to other hospital with the necessary equipment to treat them.

    “We are here to make sure that they are given proper treatment to recover.”

    On the kind of welfare package they will be given, Adamu said: “It is not what we are here for now but we have to make sure that they are taken care of and their medical bills paid then, we can talk about their entitlements.”

     Commenting on officers out on the field for various duties, the IGP said: “It is about sacrifice and national assignment. Policing is nothing but a national assignment and what has happened to our policemen here can happen to anybody  but we are encouraged to serve our country the best way we could because no sacrifice is too much for the nation. All we have to do is to make sure that they are properly taken care of.”

    On reports from other states about the gubernatorial and State Houses of Assembly elections, the IGP said: “So far, so good. The report has been generally peaceful and everything is going well.

    “As you know in human life, nothing is 100 percent okay. We have pockets of challenges here and there but we made arrangements to take care of them. So everything is going on well.”