By Wealth Oghenemaro
President Bola Tinubu has approved a large-scale recruitment of young Nigerians to serve as forest guards, as part of a nationwide initiative to combat terrorism and banditry within the country’s forests.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, presidential spokesperson Sunday Dare announced that the President has ordered the immediate deployment of forest guards across Nigeria’s 1,129 forests. These personnel will be fully trained and armed to identify and eliminate criminal elements hiding in the forests.
“The President directed that the forest guards are to be well trained and armed to perform their duties, which is essentially to flush out terrorists and criminal gangs hiding inside the forests for criminal activities,” Dare stated.
Thousands of young Nigerians are expected to be employed through this initiative, which is designed to enhance national security while creating job opportunities.
He disclosed that the program is going to be a joint effort between the federal and state governments, with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Ministry of Environment tasked with overseeing its implementation.
