Dr Ahmed Audi, Commandant-General (CG) of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has disclosed that the corps is prepared to provide protection for Very Important Persons (VIPs) despite its low manpower.

Audi said this during the CG’s Quarterly meeting with senior officers on Tuesday at the NSCDC National Headquarters in Abuja.

According to him, despite the manpower of the corps which is about 63,000, the NSCDC remained dedicated to following the directive of President Bola Tinubu.

“The corps has keyed professionally to the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr President to ensure the protection of Nigerians and all Critical National Asset and Infrastructure (CNAI).

“Despite our size, we are not complaining as this assignment is an assignment the corps is ready to tackle and it’s a welcome idea,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that President Tinubu, through his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, had announced that VIPs seeking official protection must now obtain “well-armed personnel” from the NSCDC.

The NSCDC boss further said the meeting was also aimed at discussing strategies and modalities to be adopted in handling VIP protection.

He said that the corps will also engage in strategic discussions with stakeholders at various levels to see how best to discharge the new duty assigned to it.

He however stated that personnel of the NSCDC had been actively involved in the protection of VIPs, adding that the assignment wasn’t new to the corps.

“We have been part of it alongside other agencies and it is important to note that we get trained by the military, especially the training of our special forces,” Audi said.

The CG also said that the ongoing recruitment exercise into the corps by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB) will further boost the manpower of the NSCDC.

Audi charged all state Commandants and heads of formations to live up to expectations in the discharge of their duties, adding that anyone who does not take his job seriously will be sanctioned.

“We will strengthen the monitoring mechanism on performance of heads of formations nationwide with a view to checking what they do and assessing them,” he stated.

He appreciated the efforts, professionalism, resilience and determination of personnel so far in projecting the service. (NAN)

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