Amid worsening insecurity nationwide, President Bola Tinubu has announced a national security emergency, unveiling major directives to boost troop numbers, empower forest guards, and intensify frontline operations.
The President, in a statement personally issued, said the escalating wave of attacks and abductions required extraordinary action, including accelerated recruitment into the Armed Forces and Police.
Under the new directive, the Police are to enlist an additional 20,000 personnel, increasing ongoing recruitment to 50,000, while National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camps may now be used as temporary training facilities to fast-track deployment. Tinubu added that police officers withdrawn from VIP escort duties would undergo refresher training before redeployment to high-risk zones.
He further authorised the Department of State Services (DSS) to fully activate forest-security operations, including the immediate deployment of trained forest guards to confront bandits and insurgents hiding in remote areas. The service also received approval to recruit more personnel.
“There will be no more hiding places for agents of evil,” Tinubu vowed, stressing that the federal government was moving to put “more boots on the ground, especially in flashpoint communities”.
Calling the situation a national emergency, he appealed to citizens to cooperate with authorities and support intelligence-sharing efforts, stating that securing Nigeria was a “collective responsibility, not a government task alone”.
The President also commended security forces for recent breakthroughs, including the rescue of abducted schoolgirls in Kebbi and 38 worshippers earlier seized in Kwara State, saying such successes reflect the country’s improved operational coordination and renewed offensive posture.
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