German group seeks cooperation between civil defence‎, police in fighting Boko Haram, Niger Delta militants

A German foundation, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, has called for an improved collaboration between the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the police‎ to effectively tackle the various security challenges confronting the country.
KAS Country Representative, Mrs Hildegard Beurendt–Kigozi, made the call on Wednesday during the opening of a five-day training held at the NSCDC College of Security Management in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Participants for the programme which had the theme, “Training of Trainers Monitoring Workshop” were drawn from ‎three NSCDC colleges in Abuja, Katsina and Abeokuta.
Beurendt-Kigozi‎, who noted the rising wave of violent conflict across Nigeria in recent times, stressed the need for inter-agency cooperation to stem the violence being perpetrated by the two groups.
She stressed that a cordial relationship between the police and civil defence operatives would go a long way in the fight against theBoko Haram insurgency, Niger Delta militancy, kidnapping and other criminalities in the country.‎
‎She said, “If you talk of Boko Haram, such terrorist groups are very difficult to fight all over the world. You can defeat some but it will take years to make sure such attacks are not happening.
“And what is happening in the Niger Delta, I think one part is power struggle, maybe against the new government and secondly, agitation to renew contracts for some oil wells.
“I also know there is an increase in general crime in Nigeria, especially kidnappings. This is one more reason why we must work closer with NSCDC because without cooperation of the citizens, you cannot stop such.
“Though the NSCDC cannot stem the crime rate alone, the police also have to do a lot more than it is being done today. The cooperation between the police and the NSCDC needs to be better. It is one of the major points that are hindering peace in Nigeria. Inter-agency cooperation is something that needs to be urgently worked on. I think cooperation between the NSCDC and Army is quite okay but with the Police, I think it has to be better.”
Beurendt-Kigozi‎ added that the essence of the training was to equip officers on conflict and peace management, in accordance with the rule of law and democratic tenets.
She restated the commitment of KAS towards supporting NSCDC to effectively discharge its role and also appealed for the cooperation of all citizens with the Civil Defence.
Earlier in his remarks, ‎the Provost of the NSCDC College, Iskil Makinde, assured that the agency would maximise the opportunities of the training.