Dr. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, NSCDC Boss
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has set up a Safe School Special Response Squad (SSSRS) to ensure proper protection of schools across the country.
NSCDC Commandant General (CG), Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi, disclosed this on Monday at the opening ceremony of a three-day safe school administrators and managers’ training programme at the Corps’ National Headquarters in Abuja.
Audi, represented by Deputy Commandant General (DCG) in charge of Operations, Danladi Mungadi said that the SSSRS was the armed unit of the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre (NSSRCC).
“By virtue of this creation, the Rapid Response Squad and the Female Squad has been collapsed into the SSSRS,” he said.
The CG said that one major responsibility of the new squad would be to undertake regular patrols and response to distress calls from schools.
He however, said that other duties of the team had been stipulated in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) of the NSSRCC.
“I have further directed the Commander of the NSSRCC to ensure that the SOP is disseminated to all stakeholders for proper utilisation, implementation,” he ordered.
He further directed all Command heads to appoint a safe school liaison officer for necessary interface with the NSSRCC.
Audi said that these reforms were aimed at re-strategising and repositioning the entire safe schools project for better service delivery.
He said that the implementation strategy for the safe school plan emphasised capacity building and awareness creation for stakeholders, hence, the need for the ongoing training.
Audi reiterated that NSSRCC was saddled with the responsibility of ensuring safety and security responses for schools and host communities in collaboration with all security agencies and key stakeholders.
He appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari, security agencies and all private and public sectors involved in ensuring Nigeria’s safe school initiative thrived.
“This is a new creation which requires all hands on deck if we are to achieve safety for schools and host communities by guaranteeing a seamless learning process in Nigeria,” he said.
- olamide osho