OKIKA: We Must Train And Re-train Our Intelligence Outfits
Mr. Afamefune Okika is the managing director of Afamos Security Company, a private security surveillance company with headquarters in Lagos. He told ODITA SUNDAY that it was high time intelligence agencies and the Federal government deployed technology to tackle insecurity.
Do you think it is the role of the DSS to pursue oil thieves?
ORGANISATIONALLY, I think the whole security apparatus in the country is completely muddled. It is not supposed to be the work of the DSS operatives to pursue oil thieves, if we are speaking legally, it is the responsibility of the Nigerian Police Force to look into some of these things, but unfortunately, because of the way the country is currently structured, the police are not adequately empowered.
Should they be pursuing politicians and breaking into party offices, what is the role of the DSS?
Their primary duty is to gather security intelligence for the country. Yes, the politician can be pursued by the DSS, which is in line with the act setting them up. When you are politically a risk to the nation, it is the duty of the DSS to look into your activities. There is nothing wrong with that. However, the only thing that is not in line with the modern practices is the brutality of the DSS. For instance, the last time they arrested the National Security Adviser to the former president, you could see their excessiveness. DSS naturally are not supposed to be seen like the ordinary people. But these days, they wear all forms of camouflages, walk around the streets freely with their tags. In America, you will hardly notice an intelligence official, if the person didn’t reveal his or her identity. I think the way they are going about it calls for caution.
Nigerians too should equally have it at the back of their minds that Nigeria is a country where anything goes. So, if the president decides to use DSS to achieve much of his security networking. I don’t think there is anything wrong.
Technology is far-fetched in the activities of our intelligence agencies, why?
That is the issue we are trying to overcome in this country. An average Nigerian wants things to be technologically driven, the funds are not available, but the world is actually moving forward. Nigeria should not be an exception, it should move with the time. Right now, any country that is not moving technologically is driven backward. Even doing this security business in Nigeria is not encouraging. In America, the private security industry is the highest in terms of needs to the American government.
The Nigerian government has not discovered that, yet. We are still backward, and we are backward not because we don’t know, but because we don’t want to embrace the modern techniques in fighting crimes and gathering information.
Sometimes, the police complained that the DSS are encroaching into their area of jurisdiction, what is the major cause and solutions to this?
There is no synergy and cohesion. I think it is due to lack of trust among them. When you talk to an average police officer, they claim the success in a joint operation, the same goes to the DSS; they also accuse the Nigerian police of claiming the success done by them. The issue has continued unabated for a very long time and the government has to do something. This is why some of us are calling for a total restructuring of all the security apparatus in this country, total restructuring of the Nigerian Police Force, DSS, and even the military intelligence all of them fall within.
Even if you check the excesses of some Nigerian police and DSS officials at times, some of the encouragement comes from the government of the day. If the government were not encouraging them, their wrong doings would stop. For instance, if you are harassed unlawfully, it is the duty of the government to protect you. Unfortunately, these things are not happening and the security agencies capitalise on it. Some of them believe that when police intervene in DSS cases, the police are taking over their responsibility based on what they can get from such situations.
I think government of the day should address these issues. Good enough, the Inspector General of Police is a good person, trained and well articulated. I am sure he is going to do better. Currently, he is restructuring the Nigeria police. The DSS on their own part believe they are more grounded than the Nigerian police force, so, they look at the other persons as being inferior and this battle of wit becomes the order of the day.
That is why you see them clashing. That is why, if you check the National Security and Civil Defence Corps, they are not in good terms with Nigeria Police Force. If you check the duties of the Nigeria Police Force and the DSS, constitutionally, the Nigeria police force takes the credit. Unless government decides to take a holistic approach of restructuring this apparatus, the clashes will continue.
The major challenge facing the country now is insurgency in the Northeast and terrorism activities. How can the country succeed in this fight with good intelligence?
It is very simple. For instance, why do you think the Nigerian police do excellently well when they go out of the shores of this country to carryout any responsibility? It is because they get support. If material and otherwise support is given to them, they will perform.
In this country, you cannot send an intelligence officer to the war field without giving him the necessary things he need to operate. It is not possible when these tools are not there. The government knows it. It is not that these agencies can’t do the job; some of them are perfectly well trained. Other Africa countries also come to Nigeria to acquire knowledge. At least, I have attended a seminar in Abuja, where representatives from all Africa countries came to learn from Nigeria.
Give them what it takes to train and retrain. The government shouldn’t be tired of training and retraining. If they train continuously, we would continue to get good results. Nobody can come from the moon to do the job for us. You can’t tell American CIA, FBI or Secret Service to come to Nigeria to investigate fraudsters or bad political leaders. It is still the same Nigerians that would do it.
Why are they coming down here to learn? It is because we are grounded. We have the intellectual know-how to tackle some of these problems. Overseas, intelligence gathering is the real security. In America, you don’t go for physical attack, before any crime is committed, they know and tackle it, but in Nigeria, the resources are not there, even if they are there, the whole system is embedded in corruption.
Why do you think private security practitioners are not used as undercover agents in Nigeria?
For instance, how many of these private security companies have capacity to do the job. In America, you would see a private security firm well funded. In Nigeria, the Man Guard Security (MGS) officers just receive one or two weeks training and are thrown into the field. Is it one of those officials you want to use to gather information?
Definitely, the security companies in Nigeria have not done their best too. Even if they are accusing the government, they are not doing enough. They are not investing in training, No sufficient training for officers. It’s so appalling that sometimes, in banks, the mobile policemen and the security guards resort to begging and hailing people ‘Chairman’. They are often referred to as beggars in uniform and that alone will not give the government the encouragement to employ private security firms.
The banks should have done better if the private security firms were working perfectly. As you know, banks spend a lot on mobile police attaches on monthly bases. It would have been cheaper if they hired private security firms, but unfortunately the private security firms do not have sufficient fund and modern technology to safeguard lives and property.
What do you think are the challenges of these intelligence agencies?
Give them what it takes to train and retrain. The government shouldn’t be tired of training and retraining. If they train continuously, we would continue to get good results. Nobody can come from the moon to do the job for us. You can’t tell American CIA, FBI or Secret Service to come to Nigeria to investigate fraudsters or bad political leaders. It is still the same Nigerians that would do it.
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