In a bid to resist emer­gency security threats in the country, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has intro­duced a new security unit termed the Rapid Re­sponse Squad (RRS).
The unit was unveiled during the combined passing out parade of 456 Border Patrol Corps comprising 56 RRS, 50 Sector Commanders, 300 Border Patrol Corps and 50 specialised Immigra­tion drivers at the Immi­gration Training School, Kano over the weekend.
Speaking at the oc­casion, the Minister of Interior, Lt Gen Abdul­rahman Danbazau (rtd) said the initiative became imperative to ensure in­ternal security, adding that the training is part of plans to resuscitate bor­der patrol.
“What we are trying to do is to resuscitate bor­der patrol. This informed this training that they have just completed. The next step is to ensure we revive the aircraft and other equipment because these things cannot be done manually; we need technology to do that. We have 4,500km borders, we are coming up with policies that will ensure that our border coverage is effective and efficient”, he said.
On his part, the Comp­troller General of NIS, Muhammad Babandede, said the Rapid Response Squad is aimed at curb­ing emergency security threats in the country, adding that it will first be based in Abuja and grad­ually get developed to all states across the nation.
Babandede assured of adequate security at the borders to check terrorist, violent foreign herdsmen and illegal immigrants coming into the country. He added that 56 officers and men of the NIS were trained in the latest se­curity and emergency response techniques by foreign security experts alongside other person­nel at the training school.
According to him, the RRS will work with oth­er security agencies to ensure adequate internal security in view of the nu­merous security threats in the country.