THE Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Sule, has advocated for a public-private sector partnership (PPP) as measure to secure educational institutions from attacks across the country.
Sule made the call in Lafia during a one-day sensitisation workshop for strategic stakeholders in the North-Central Geopolitical Zone, on the activities of the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre (NSSRCC) and the Safe Schools programme in Nigeria organised by Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Emmanuel Akabe, described the protection of education as a collective responsibility by all and sundry and encouraged residents of the state to collaborate with security agencies to ensure the maximum success of the safe schools implementation project.
He also donated and flagged off a state safe schools response centre in Lafia, the state capital.
Sule lauded the Federal Government for the establishment of the NSSRCC and called on individuals and corporation bodies to also contribute by building perimeter fencing and hostels in schools under the PPP arrangement as another way to secure education.
The governor bemoaned recent abduction of some people near the Federal University Lafia, a situation he disclosed had compelled the state government to declare a curfew in the affected community.
He thanked security agencies for their swift intervention as he pledged continuous support towards enhancing their performance.
In his remarks, the Commandant General (CG) of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ahmed Abubakar Audi, stated that the menace of violence and attacks on schools in Nigeria had spanned over a decade.
According to him, the spate of attacks on education manifests in the destruction of facilities, disrupting schools and keeping children out of schools, adding that the situation presents consequences which could only be imagined.
The CG maintained that to address the menace, the NSSRCC was created by the government and domiciled under the NSCDC, with the responsibility of coordinating safety and security responses against violence in schools and the host communities.
He said: “The centre does not function in isolation from other security agencies, but serves as a coordinating agent, also collaborating with all security agencies and other relevant stakeholders with the Federal and State Ministry of Education, and Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs) as major partners.
“To this effect, the federal, state and local governments are being engaged as partners in progress,” NSCDC Boss explained.
On his part, the keynote speaker, Brig Gen MBG Martins, called on state governments and relevant stakeholders to key into the Safe Schools project, saying that the United Nations promotes education as a way of supporting member states.
Martins suggested the need for the provision of adequate security around schools to assure citizens of adequate protection against attacks, reiterating that the measure would in turn improve the statistics of school enrollment across the country.
Earlier in his welcome address, Nasarawa State Commandant of NSCDC, Abbas Bappa Muhammad said, “safety and security did not just happen, saying this could only happen as a result of collective consensus and public investment.”
The commandant stressed that parents owe their children who are among the most vulnerable citizens in the society, a life free of violence and fear.
There was the presentation of goodwill messages by sister agencies, school children while the Commander of the NSSRCC, Dr Tersoo Shaapera gave an overview of efforts which led to the establishment of the centre, its functions, activities and plans.
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