The Nigeria Hunter and Forest Security Service (NHFSS) has called on President Bola Tinubu to consider the Nigerian Hunters and Forest Security Bill before him for assent to give it legal backing.

The Commander General (CG) of NHFSS, Joshua Osatimehin, made the call during the training of over 375 officers of the service by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), in Abuja.

Mr Osatimehin said the signing of the bill would boost and empower the service to do more and contribute to the fight against criminality in Nigeria.

According to him, in the South-South, the men of NHFSS are doing fantastically well in the fight against oil bunkering, oil theft and saving money for the federal government.

He called for the financing of the activities of hunters and forest security services, adding that the personnel had been working voluntarily.

”We are attacking the bandits because nobody knows the forest more than the hunters.

”We have been saying this over and over: that Nigerian hunters and forest security are the missing link in Nigeria’s security architecture,’’ he said.

Mr Osatimehin said the training workshop was designed to enhance the capacity of its operatives in their quest to actively fight criminals in the forests.

He added that the training would go a long way in enhancing the productivity of NHFSS personnel and strengthening the security of lives and property in forests across the country.

The CG said that the capacity workshop was also to enable the hunters to contribute to the realisation of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the area of security.

He thanked the commandant-general of the NSCDC for giving them the platform to have well-trained personnel and to boost their capacity to deliver on their mandates.

“NSCDC has over the years been rendering necessary security training to NHFSS to enable the service to be abreast of current strategies on intelligence gathering, security tips, and codes of conduct, among others, in line with the best international security standards.

”This is geared towards safeguarding the country from crimes and criminality, especially in the ungoverned space of the forests nationwide.

”The training has been impactful and we have learnt a lot in the last couple of days. It is a good effort in the right direction.

”This is one way to boost the confidence of the citizens that the Nigerian hunters and forest security personnel are well trained and are ready to take up the assignment of protecting the forest,’’ he said.

The NHFSS CG commended Mr Tinubu for the successes so far recorded in the fight against insecurity in the last year.

The deputy commander general (DCG), technical services, John Metchie, said the training was a train-the-trainer initiative to enable the senior officers to pass the same down to the local level.

Mr Metchie said the organisation was determined to bring everybody up to standard, to the same level as the NSCDC, police, Army and other security services.

He said the organisation had, over the years, been collaborating with all the security agencies to get its personnel adequately trained.

”We have also collaborated with the Police Department of Training and Development on managing security and security challenges within the forested region.

”We have also effectively collaborated with the State Security Service on intelligent gathering within a forested region.

”And now, with the NSCDC being one of the leading agencies in Nigeria in terms of internal security awareness campaigns and the mandate of securing critical infrastructure, part of their job is what we are also doing within the forest because pipelines pass through the forest and mineral resources are also embedded within the forest.

”So we are here to learn from them being one of the parenting bodies of security,’’ he said.

Mr Metchie further said that the NHFSS had been clamouring for presidential assent to its bill to be able to prove to the public and the federal government that they were up to the task.

”We want Mr President to give official assent to empower our officers and command structures to work with the constituted authority to curb crimes and criminality within the forest.

”You will agree with me that forests are the treasure trove of any country, and 80 per cent of our mineral resources are located within the forested region and bandits and other criminal elements have taken over this forest,” he said. 

(NAN)