The minister of interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Danbazau (retd.) has said that the federal government had taken seriously the recent report that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have been sneaking battle-hardened jihadist from Syria into Nigeria to train terrorists in a terror exchange programme for possible attacks in Britain.
It was also reported that fanatics from Nigeria were also being sent to the Middle East for training in a chilling “exchange programme.”
But speaking in Abuja on Wednesday at the presentation of curriculum and training manuals for the Nigeria Immigration Service, (NIS) training institutions, Danbazau said in government would not rest on its oars in securing the country in all situations.
“When information like this (influx of ISIS members into the country) comes, we do not take things for granted, even if it is not true, because it is security information.
“Before now, we were prepared to ensure that everything we needed to do security-wise was done and such information also raises the alarm, we will double our efforts towards that,” he said.
He said the ISIS threat was receiving the necessary attention, noting that all that needed to be done to protect the country was being implemented.
Commenting on the NIS training manual, the minister stressed the importance of training to the security services, saying promotion of personnel and career progression would be tied to training and courses attended by the officers.
“If you travel a lot, you will see what happens in other countries. They solely focus on training and they will be sent on courses to determine your career progression.
“We will tie a promotion to every course for every rank. There is a course that is expected that you go through for you to qualify for that rank, there are promotion exams. For progression, training is very important. It is very clear in the immigration rules. There is a need for us to give that motivation. It gives you room to work hard. This will apply to all the (security) services,” he said.
In his remarks, the comptroller-general of NIS, Mr. Muhammad Babandede, said that the curriculum, manuals and teachers guide were prepared by over 30 university professors and professionals.
The documents, he explained, would be used at the NIS Command and Staff College, Sokoto, Nigeria Immigration Training School, Kano, Nigeria Immigration Training School, Orlu and the Nigeria Immigration Training School, Ahoada.
“I strongly believe that this initiative will produce well-trained and better-equipped officers and men that will reposition the NIS,” he added.
