Police consider returning 10.5m displaced children to classroom

Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, has vowed to implement the Federal Government policy on the Safe School Initiative in places of learning across the federation.

With the full deployment of men and officers of the force, in collaboration with sister security agencies and paramilitary bodies, the IGP assured a drastic reduction in the over 10.5 million children displaced from schools due to insecurity.

The security threat became more pronounced with the National Policy on Safety, Security and Violence-Free Schools report indicating that between 2012 and 2016, more than 600 teachers were killed in attacks, while more than 19,000 others were displaced.

Egbetokun spoke yesterday at the launch of the Federal Government Safe School Initiative in Kano, vowing that the police were committed to enabling children, affected by conflicts and insecurity, to continue with their education unhindered.

Represented by National Coordinator, Safe School Protection, CP Abayomi Shogunle, the IGP hinted at a plan to establish the first Safe School Response Coordination Centre, which would be replicated across states and local councils to respond to distress calls in schools.

According to the IGP, the measures, when fully deployed, would strengthen security resilience and integrate host communities into the security architecture in the protection of education, as well as enhance the capacity of the school community to protect education.

On his part, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf expressed satisfaction with the programme, restating his commitment to providing an enabling environment for its full implementation.

He reiterated his administration’s readiness to foster an atmosphere conducive to teaching and learning in the state, adding that the policy aligned with several of the government’s programmes geared at accelerating school enrolment.

Represented by the Commissioner for Education, Ali Haruna Makoda, the governor said besides security efforts, the ruling New Nigeria People’s Party(NNPP)administration had invested huge resources in infrastructure, teaching materials, and uniforms as part of a commitment to a state of emergency declared on education.

In their separate remarks, the Chairman of the League of Ulama in Kano, Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, public affairs analyst, Prof. Kamilu Sani Fagge, and others advocated improved funding for the welfare of police for efficient service delivery.

They urged the force to work on building public trust.