The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has disclosed that it has over 10,000 personnel in the agro rangers department ready to defend farmers against attacks.
This was contained in a statement released on Thursday by Olusola Odumosu, NSCDC director of public relations, quoted Ahmed Audi, commandant-general of the corps, as speaking when Umar Namadi, the governor of Jigawa, paid him a visit.
“By our Act, NSCDC is mandated to protect and provide security for the government’s critical national assets and infrastructure,” the statement reads.
“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 have been getting intelligence reports on how 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 agro-rangers 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.
“More efforts will be channelled towards peace-building through the use of alternative dispute resolution.”
The statement said the governor of Jigawa appealed to the NSCDC to provide security for farmers in the state being attacked by herders and other criminal elements.