Governor Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti State, Tuesday described intelligence failure as one of the major factors responsible for the security crisis in Nigeria.
Oyebanji stated this at the Nigeria Police Force Stakeholders’ forum on the security of schools in Ekiti State and the launching of the Schools Protection Squad, SPS.
Speaking at the event themed ‘Strengthening security resilience and integration of host communities in the protection of education’, he explained that responding to attacks is not the only method to address security issues, stressing that threats should be envisaged from the onset for the security agencies to be on top of their game.
Oyebanji, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Security, Brig. Gen. Ebenezer Ogundana (retd), emphasized the need for the NPF to intensify efforts towards planning ahead of criminal elements rather than waiting until they initiate their operations.
His words: “We want to commend the efforts and the encouragement of the Police for coming up with this.
“Most of the security crisis we have in Nigeria today is due to intelligence failure.
“We should be able to envisage what will happen and how we can be on top of the situation rather than responding to attacks all the time.
“When we look at all our schools in the state; we have been working with the security agencies, and the Commissioner of Education to identify the high-risk schools which include Boarding schools, Federal Government colleges and special schools. We will make sure that we patrol these schools to ensure maximum security, and to have zero tolerance of criminal elements attacking our schools.”
In his remarks, the National Coordinator of SPS, CP Lanre Ogunlowo explained that the squad is an innovative intervention of the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbedokun, in ensuring a safe and secure environment in schools.
Also speaking, the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Akinwale Adeniran hailed the IGP for selecting Ekiti State as the first beneficiary of the initiative in the southwest region, saying it’s a giant step that will guarantee the security of students and teachers.