– A group, the Global Excellence Foundation has called on the Nigerian government to adopt the use of Civilian Joint Task Force in the fight against militancy in the Niger Delta
– The group said the programme should be adopted and further expanded by the federal government into various security institutions in Nigeria
A group, the Global Foundation (GEF) has said that the same approach used in combating the dreaded Boko Haram terrorists in the North eastern part of Nigeria should be adopted in the Niger Delta region.
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, July 26, the country director of GEF Yemi Ola said the same adoption of the Civilian Joint Task Force in the fight against insurgents should be employed to curb militancy.
Ola, a professor and a former member of the House of Representatives in the second republic while commending the Nigerian army for its absorption of 250 CJTFs said the programme should be adopted and further expanded by the federal government.
Ola said expanding the programme will accommodate more youth who he said had risked their lives to confront terrorists and mischief makers.
He added that the development is commendable for its uniqueness in solving issues with ex-members and mop up of arms thereby leaving all parties to a win-win situation.
“Now that the militants have not started taking human life is when to bring in a sort of civilian JTF, which is the concept of community policing that helped defeat Boko Haram terrorists in the Borno axis,” Ola said.
“President Muhammadu Buhari must not wait till things in the south south gets as ugly as under Boko Haram before applying this homegrown solution.
“It therefore makes sense that the remaining civilian JTF are accepted into one security agency or the other so that youths in other geo-political zones will easily heed the clarion call to serve because they would have seen that the federal government does not forget nor neglect to honour sacrifice made in national interest.
“The absorbed youths, with the asset they possess by way of detailed knowledge of the local geography and lore, are now the first line of defence against insurgency and criminality.
“This sort of community policing that Mr President has implemented not only end Boko Haram’s reign of terror but will go a long way to help in identifying individuals with tendencies to launch future attacks,” he said.
Ola further called on the Nigerian government to expand the process by directing all military, para-military and security agencies to take inventory of their personnel needs in the areas covered by the civilian JTF.
This, Ola said will help identify members of the CJTF that can be filled under the absorption programme.
On Friday, July 22, the Nigerian army absorbed 250 member of the Civilian Joint Task Force who had helped in the fight against Boko Haram terrorist in the north east.
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