By Tobias Lengnan Dapam
Governor Umar Namadi of Jigawa state paid a working visit on Wednesday evening to Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Commandant General, Dr Ahmed Abubakar Audi, and urged him to ensure dispute resolution between farmers and herders.
Gov. Namadi commended the Corps for its pivotal roles in the maintenance of internal security in the nation.
A statement issued by NSCDC PRO, Olusola Odumosu said the governor expressed satisfaction with the performance of the Corps nationwide and lauded Commandant General for providing quality leadership through dints of hardwork, dedication and patriotism.
“I want to thank you for the good and commendable performance of the Corps in the area of internal security.
“Within just two years, you have transformed the agency through your hardwork and repositioned it for better performance,” the Gov. Said.
He informed the CG of the concerns expressed by farmers in the state due to attacks by herders which has over the years led to fear.
He appealed for prompt intervention of the Corps in providing security for farmers in the affected area in order to restore their confidence to freely go back to farming.
“I want to passionately appeal to you to give us a squad or a team of your Agro Rangers who are well trained and specialised in dealing with the issue at hand.
“If we have that opportunity, it will bring a lasting peace to the area, our people would be able to go to the farm and economic activities in the areas will certainly improve”, he said.
The Governor stated that Jigawa State contributes a lot to the food security of the nation and the affected area was a major point where food was produced for both the people of the state and the nation at large.
In his response, Dr Audi thanked the Executive Governor for his visit and promised to deploy well-trained Agro Rangers personnel to the state to find lasting solutions to the lingering farmers and herders clashes.
“By our Act, NSCDC is mandated to protect and provide security for government’s critical national assets and infrasructure.
“We have over 10,000 staff in the Agro Rangers’ department that are well trained to provide security and safety for farmers and other agro allied products and investments in the nation.
“We concentrate on states that are major producers of food for this nation and Jigawa is one of the states that give food security to this country.
“We have been getting intelligence reports on the way bandits and kidnappers scare farmers and since we have some reserve personnel for this kind of request, we will provide the service that you need”, The CG assured.
Dr Audi also thanked Gov. Namadi for his support to the Corps in Jigawa State, and assured him of putting a stop to the security challenges facing the agricultural sector.
He said that more effort will be channeled towards peace building through the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), pointing out that in the last two years, over 100 farmer/ herder clashes were amicably resolved by the Corps.
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