The Federal Government (FG) of Nigeria and the United States (US) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the training of the commanders of the police Special Intervention Squad (SIS) which was launched to tackle the rising cases of kidnapping, banditry and other crimes plaguing Nigeria. The training programme was inaugurated on Monday by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Olukayode Egbetokun which is a collaboration with the United States Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
Speaking during the inauguration ceremony, the IGP said, “It is with profound sense of duty that I stand before you today at the inauguration of the training programme for commanders of the Special Intervention Squad. The programme is designed to prepare the trainees for the challenges associated with their new responsibility of taking up the lead positions in combating the scourge of kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, terrorism and other evolving challenges of crime confronting our society.
“Without mincing words, our country, like many other parts of the globe, is experiencing security challenges arising from the activities of the criminal elements seeking to undermine the peace and security of our nation. This development demands an instant and appropriate response from us as the lead agency in the internal security architecture of the country.
“The situation at hand has challenged our ingenuity such that beyond the conventional reactive response approach to crime management, we conceived the idea of the Special Intervention Squad, to serve as an elite unit of the Force, designed to anticipate, respond spontaneously and manage crisis situations.
“The squad was primarily established for the purpose of confronting every situation that threatens the peace of the citizenry and to restore law and order across the nation.
“The initiative is pivotal to safeguarding the lives and property of all Nigerians while guaranteeing the supremacy of the state and the rule of law, thus protecting the integrity of our nation.”
He also stated that the MoU was signed on December 18, 2023 while the formal launch of the squad in FCT was done on January 17, 2024.
The IGP said, “The FCT-SIS within the period has immensely boosted the security architecture and significantly decimated the camp of criminal elements by arresting a total of 139 kidnapping and armed robbery suspects, recovering of three GPR Chargers, two AK-47 rifles, one Type-O6, for locally fabricated guns, one Berretta pistol, two Makarov pistols, four locally fabricated pump action guns, 504 pieces of AK-47 ammunition, 100 pieces of AA ammunition, as well as the rescue of 154 kidnapped victims unhurt.
“Among the successes enumerated above was the interception along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway of three major supplier of arms and ammunition to bandits operating in Niger, Zamfara and Kaduna states.
“Similarly, operatives of the squad on Friday, January 26, 2024, engaged some armed bandits within the FCT-Kaduna axis in a fierce gun battle during ehich three of them, including their gang leader, one Mai0Gemu (aka Gadoro), were neutralized.”
According to him, the successes recorded is a testimony of the willpower of the Force to overcome adversaries, adding that a total of 38 officers were selected for the training to assume the roles of SIS commanders across the nation.