Insecurity: FCT Civil Defence inaugurates Agro Rangers squad

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command has inaugurated its Agro Rangers squad meant to help solve farmers-herders crisis in the capital city.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony at the Corps’ headquarters on Friday, the FCT Commandant of the NSCDC, Patrick Ukpan said officers and men of the newly inaugurated unit had been briefed on their duties and responsibilities.

Agro Rangers unit was launched in 2016 following the Federal Government’s desire to provide security in all Agro-allied ventures which included grazing areas, Silos, farmlands and ranches.

55 personnel from FCT command were among the first batch of trained personnel, with another set of 70 currently undergoing training in the second batch, Commandant Ukpan said.

“The first batch of our specially trained personnel to man the unit across the country has passed out from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps College of Peace and Conflict Management, Katsina,” he noted.

He said the personnel had undergone rigorous and intense training from the best hands in the field.

On his part, the Minister of FCT, Musa Bello, commended the NSCDC for the initiative, saying the Agro Rangers were the missing link in the country’s security architecture.

Represented at the occasion by the Acting Director in the security department of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, Bello Abdullateef, the FCT Minister noted that there was a need to have mediators to tackle crisis between farmers and herders.

He pledged his readiness to continue supporting activities of the NSCDC in the FCT.

Also, Lizzy Igbine, the National President of Nigerian Women Agro-allied Farmers Association said the inauguration of the Agro Rangers was timely.

While lamenting that Agric business was almost coming to a halt in the FCT because of insecurity, she expressed rediness of her association and other stakeholders in agric business in the country to work with the corps in order to ensure food sufficiency in the country.