Forest guards: How not to decentralise police to end banditry, kidnapping

Government has mulled deploying forest guards to combat the criminals. But the worry for stakeholders is having one-too-many piecemeal approaches to the inefficiency of the Nigerian police, BERTRAM NWANNEKANMA and HULDAH AKPORHERHE report.

Piqued by the security challenges bedeviling the country, President Bola Tinubu recently pledged to establish forest guards to secure the nation’s rainforests. The proposal stemmed from the large expense of forests, especially in the South, which has become hideouts for bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements.

Security operatives had on several occasions made arrests through raids on crime syndicates that use these forests as hideouts.

Before now, the national forestry law only allowed the Federal Government to administer the eight national parks in the country, where gate fees are paid by tourists and where there is organised harvesting of overpopulated animals. By law, the states own all forest reserves, formulate and implement policy, and manage forestry activities.

To actualise this role, the State Forestry Department employs and trains a group of intermediate officers called forest guards, who rise through the ranks to attain the position of Chief Rangers. They have the duty to secure the forest reserve and ensure preservation of revenue for the state.

The rise in kidnapping and other heinous crimes in the forest has added to the responsibility of the forest guards lately. Recall that a bill, which sought to establish an agency for forest guards to man federal roads and highways, scaled second reading in the House of Representatives in 2020. It aimed to empower the forest guards “to detect and prevent crime, banditry, kidnapping, terrorism and violence.” The bill, however, died a natural death.

Today, the Nigerian Hunter & Forest Security Service (NHFSS) formerly known as the Nigeria Hunter Council, an umbrella body of Hunters in Nigeria has sponsored another bill, seeking for its establishment.

The NHFSS establishment bill, which was passed by the Senate in April 2023, seeks to give legal backing to their activities.

Their functions include, assisting the police and other security agencies in detecting crime through promoting effective communication with the police and other security agencies.

Commander General of NHFSS, Joshua Osatimehin, said signing the bill into law is in line with the President’s plan to deploy forest guards, saying it would give the NHFSS the legal backing to “chase criminals from the forests in communities”.

Osatimehin said President Tinubu’s plan to reinvigorate the forest guards would effectively complement efforts of other formal security agencies in the fight against banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, Boko Haram and other criminality in the ungoverned spaces in the country.

He described establishment of forest guards by the Federal Government as overdue, stressing that NHFSS has already been fully prepared for the task over the years as officers and men of the service have been fully trained on intelligence gathering and other security strategies in line with the best international practices

He explained that NHFSS had over the years been complimenting efforts of other formal security agencies in the protection of lives and property in the country, most especially in forests across the country.

Security stakeholders, however, expressed concerns that both forest guards and NHFSS members shared the same functions and might result in unnecessary clashes, even with the police.

An expert on conflicts associated with environmental issues, from Ekiti State University, Azeez Olaniyan, believed that forest spaces must be properly governed with the services of special security forces that are trained to work in this terrain.

He said: “The government must also invest in technology – like Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance systems, to monitor criminal activity. Taking these basic steps will act as a deterrent, and perhaps put a stop, to some of this activity.”

Vice Chairman of the Institute of Safety Professionals of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, Chinyere Amaechi, acknowledged the shortage of security personnel in the country and proposed a collaborative effort between existing security agencies and trained professionals in forest policing.

According to Amaechi, “A more targeted approach in combating insecurities in Nigeria would be to enact the NHFSS bill, which specifically addresses security concerns in forested areas.

“By separating the roles of forest guards from their traditional responsibilities and training them specifically for security tasks, better outcomes can be achieved. However, the identification of high-risk areas and the provision of sufficient manpower and resources are critical.

“If Mr President would open it up, welcome suggestions, we have efficient security personnel that could be drafted into this, and then, they bring in people of like minds and teamwork. So, it’s just to remove that ‘Nigerian factor’ out of it, and it is possible.”

Amaechi identified potential challenges in implementing the deployment of forest guards for security purposes to include the need for commitment, adequate resource allocation, and overcoming the ‘Nigerian factor’ characterised by lackadaisical attitudes and corruption.

For Security Consultant and Managing Director of Badinson Security, Matthew Ibadin, there is a need for comprehensive reform of Nigeria’s security architecture for effective policing.

Ibadin, who commended the President’s initiative, however, highlighted the need for a comprehensive reform of the country’s security architecture to address the underlying issues hampering its effectiveness.

He said there is a need for decentralisation, involvement of the private sector, adequate funding and equipment, public trust and cooperation, and more significantly, restructuring and empowering the police.

He said the existing centralised security approach implemented by the federal government, which involves exclusive control over the police, is a barrier to effectively addressing the security challenges in Nigeria.

He argued that crime is a local issue and proposed the decentralisation of the police to involve local and state governments in the security apparatus.

“What the present government should do is to  present a bill,  for a law, that will make the state governments own  police,  meaning that they will be able to formulate and translate their policing into reality within their domain. Only the federal government owns the police we have today. It is too far from the people and that is a fundamental problem,” he said.

A security consultant and Deputy State Commandant for the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN), Segun Musa, also expressed doubts about the initiative and emphasised the importance of utilising existing indigenous security organisations and local knowledge for effective security measures.

Drawing from his experience in the sector, Musa questioned the need for another recruitment drive by the National Security Council (NSC) to establish forest guards, given the existing security structures in place.

He pointed out that Nigeria already has well-organised hunter groups and the Vigilante Group of Nigeria, which are responsible for safeguarding various regions and have pending bills before the federal government.

“We have hunters that are well organised within all the regions in Nigeria. Beyond, we have the people we call the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) that already have a bill with the federal government, and part of their primary responsibility is to cater for the forest, the pipeline and every other area that security architecture is not covered. So, I don’t see the need for it.”

Musa, who identified the financial burden associated with recruiting and training additional security personnel as of his primary concerns, highlighted the persistent issue of inadequate funding for security agencies, which often leads to underutilisation and disengaging of personnel.

He cautioned against creating a surplus of armed individuals, who lack proper integration into civil society, as it could potentially pose future security challenges.

He stressed the need of recruiting individuals from local communities, who possess an in-depth understanding of the terrain, demography, and cultural dynamics of the areas they would safeguard.

By empowering these organisations and integrating them into the overall security architecture, he believes that intelligence sharing and coordination could be enhanced, leading to more effective security measures.

Musa emphasised the significance of engaging local communities and traditional institutions to foster effective community management and cooperation.

“We should learn from the experiences of the Nigerian military and police, highlighting the challenges that arise when security personnel are unfamiliar with the areas they are assigned to protect.

“So, for you to achieve that, you must make use of people that reside within that domain. That is the only way out and that is where you can be rest assured that you identify what are the challenges within every forest, within your confine.

“Otherwise, recruiting people from Sokoto to guard forest in Oyo, or recruiting people from Oyo to guard forest in Enugu, is just a waste of time and it’ll bring up more crisis than solving any crisis,” he added.

But supporting the move, chairman, Institute of Safety Professionals of Nigeria (ISPON) Lagos branch, Olusola Ogunleye, said it’s just the right way to go.

According to Ogunleye, Nigeria is currently facing a new dimension of security threats, including terrorism, kidnapping, and armed banditry.

“Forest reserves have become havens for criminal activities due to their vastness and remote locations. Deploying forest guards would not only counter security threats but also preserve the ecological balance of the forests.

“The forest guards are a security layer in our national security architecture. Improving their capabilities and capacity will go a long way to strengthen national security and walking within other layers of security, it would help to tackle the menace of banditries, kidnappings, and other forms of terrorism, in a way that will be win-win for good security, for environmental protection, and ultimately, other forms of human security in the country,” he said.