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Minister of Interior seeks Police Trust Fund Act amendment

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has said his ministry has decided to seek an amendment of the Police Trust Fund Act to include other internal security agencies in the country, this he said will help overcome some of the challenges militating against the optimal provision of internal security in the country.

Aregbesola stated this Friday in Abuja when he received participants of the Senior Executive Course 43 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPPS), Kuru, near Jos.

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In a statement issued on behalf of the Director of Press and signed by Towoju Raphael, the minister stated that the Police Trust Fund Act has so many potentials in the resolution of most security challenges faced in Nigeria.

Aregbesola added that the objective of the Act which was recently signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari came into force on the 24th of June, 2019 and was to provide a legal framework for the Management and control of a special intervention fund that will aid the training and retraining of personnel of the Nigeria Police Force.

 He further noted that it was also aimed at providing state-of-the-art security equipment and other related facilities for the enhancement of skills of personnel of the Nigeria Police Force.

The Minister called on the participants of the Senior Executive Course 43, to throw their weight behind the initiative to include the Ministry of Interior which has the mandate of providing internal security for all in the Trust Fund.

He stated that it would be an overkill for the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps NSCDC, Nigeria Correctional Service NCOs, the Federal Fire Service FFS and Nigeria Immigration Service NIS which are key actors in providing internal security, to create separate Trust Funds of their own to be able to effectively achieve the Ministry’s mandate.

“We would be presenting a memo on this to the Federal Executive Council. The objective is to make available other sources of funding to the paramilitary agencies under the Ministry to meet their needs beyond the limited allocation in the Appropriation Bill,” he stressed.

Aregbesola also disclosed the decision of the ministry and its agencies on strengthening the NSCDC to reposition it to become an Elite Corps that will ensure internal security.

He said that a manpower audit of officers and men of the corps to carry out this task is being put in place to identify gaps both in number, skills and competence.

“This will no doubt enhance internal security, public safety and citizenship integrity driven by innovation, people, technology and systems, in addition to robust collaboration with critical stakeholders.

“I humbly solicit the support of your Institute in the execution of the various policy reforms of the Ministry which will better position it and its agencies to achieve the provision of security for all citizens. We also require your support in conceptualizing for the Federal Government the need for the full release of budgetary appropriation on internal security matters, especially at this critical time of national security emergency,” Aregbesola restated.

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