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INTRODUCTION It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to the 2012 MinisterialPlatform of the Ministry of Interior. In accordance with democratictenets, we consider this a wonderful opportunity to use this forum toinform Nigerians on how we have been running the affairs of theMinistry of Interior so far.When I assumed duty as Minister in July 2011, I took out time to goround some Agencies and Formations under my Ministry. In thecourse of my familiarization tour, which is still ongoing, I observedthat the Ministry and its Services were in dire need of policy review,capacity building, infrastructural development, improvedoperational efficiency and sound planning. Indeed there wasparticularly the need for the spirit of believing amongst officers andother staff of the Ministry and its Agencies in the face of dauntingchallenges. They all needed to believe that working in synergy wewill be able to deliver on our mandate. I saw despair. My first tasktherefore, was to restore hope; give signal that we can get it right;that we can achieve.

The importance of a motivated workforce to theachievement of any organization’s goals is indisputable.Therefore, let me quickly state here that I immediatelydirected the release of the results of the verificationexercise of officers and men of the Nigeria Security andCivil Defence Corps (NSCDC) which saw the properplacement of over 40,000 in the last quarter of 2011. Inaddition, I saw to it that overdue promotion interviews forsenior officers of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)were conducted. Furthermore, I immediately directedthat the verification exercise for officers and men of theFederal Fire Service (FFS) be carried out as a prelude to thecomprehensive re-organization of the Service. Ladies andGentlemen, suffice to state that these measuresimmediately raised the morale of officers and men of theAgencies.

Having given that brief background, I wish to state,therefore, that this briefing is anchored on the strides wehave made so far in addressing some of these challenges.These are in order to reposition the Ministry and itsServices to deliver on our mandate in line with thegovernment’s Transformation Agenda. This is particularlyin the light of the increasing internal security challengesthat we are currently witnessing and the internationaldimension that it is assuming.

THE MINISTRY OF INTERIOR – HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT

Before I proceed further, I wish to apprise you of howthe Ministry came to be what it is today. The Ministrypredates the country’s independence. It wasestablished in 1956 as the Ministry of Internal Affairs,modeled after the British Home Office, for purposes ofmaintaining law and order. It was then charged withthe responsibilities for internal security, publicguidance, correction and reformation of delinquentsand matters affecting public welfare. Others includedregistration of births and deaths, administration ofestates, federal elections, administration of liquorlicences, protection of territorial waters, etc.

There were grave ambivalences in the definedresponsibilities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Thesewere manifest in situations where the Ministry wassaddled with the responsibility of maintaining internalsecurity without having the necessary control over therequisite indispensable para-military establishments suchas the Police Force, Passport Office, Revenue andPreventive Divisions of the Customs and ExciseDepartment. The Fire Service was also under thesupervision of the Nigeria Police Force.

Since then, the Ministry has undergone several structuralchanges both in functions and nomenclature. Today theMinistry of Interior is responsible for:

Granting of Nigerian citizenship;

Consular and immigration services;

Granting of business permits and expatriate quotas;

Declaration of public holidays;

Co-ordination of National/Independence Day Celebrations;

Reformation and re-integration of inmates;Security of lives and properties;

Recruitment of officers and men of the Prison Service,Immigration Service, Fire Service and the Nigeria Security and CivilDefence Corps; and

Managing the retirement benefits of retirees of some paramilitaryServices.

VISION, MISSION AND MANDATE OF THE MINISTRY OF INTERIOR

The Vision of the Ministry is: “to provide complementaryinternal security services in accordance with internationalbest practices;” while our Mission is “to render to Nigeriansand foreigners alike diverse internal security and otherancillary services that are highly qualitative, efficient,courteous and transparent.” The mandate of the Ministryinvolves fostering the maintenance of internal security andcitizenship integrity for the promotion of good governance. It istherefore obvious the prime place the Ministry occupies in theTransformation Agenda of this government. As we all know, everyother programme in the agenda is predicated on internal security.

The Ministry maintains internal security through:

The Vision of the Ministry is: “to providecomplementary internal security services in accordancewith international best practices;”while our Mission is “to render to Nigerians andforeigners alike diverse internal security and otherancillary services that are highly qualitative, efficient,courteous and transparent.”The mandate of the Ministry involves fostering themaintenance of internal security and citizenshipintegrity for the promotion of good governance. It istherefore obvious the prime place the Ministry occupiesin the Transformation Agenda of this government. Aswe all know, every other programme in the agenda ispredicated on internal security.The Ministry maintains internal security through:

i. Protection of the society through the safe custody andreformation of those legally interned;

ii. Control of the entry into and exit from the country ofall persons, monitoring the activities of all non-Nigerians, issuance of visas, passports and expatriatequota;

iii.Protection of national assets and criticalinfrastructure, forestalling acts of terrorism andregulation of private guards security companies; and

iv.Protection of lives and properties against wantondestruction by fire and other emergencies.

Structure of the Ministry of InteriorThe Ministry executes its mandatethrough six Departments, four keyParamilitary Services and two Agenciesas follows:

Departments:i. Human Resources Managementii. Planning, Research and Statisticsiii. Finance and Accountsiv. Procurementv. Citizenship and Businessvi. Para-Military

Para-Military Services:I. Nigeria Prisons Services (NPS)II. Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)III. Federal Fire Service (FFS)

Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

Agencies:(i) Civil Defence(ii) Fire(iii) Immigration (iv) Prisons Services Board (CDFIPS)(ii) Custom, Immigration and Prisons Pension Office (CIPPO).

• Programmes/Activities of the Ministry in Relation to Mandate and Challenges

.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, we have in the last one year, in our effort to deliver on our mandate and key into the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, executed several programmes and initiated some key innovative interventions

KEY INNOVATIVE INTERVENTIONS:

Given the earlier narrated scenario in theMinistry, when I assumed duty asHonourable Minister there was theurgent need to review some of thepolicies of the sector to fast trackprogress in the Ministry, its Services andthe Agencies. I therefore wish tomention quickly some of the keyinterventions we had to make.

AUTOMATION OF EXPATRIATE QUOTA ADMINISTRATION

Prior to my assumption of office, the procedure for the processing of ExpatriateQuota applications was very cumbersome. Thus there were unnecessary timewasting, delays and sharp-practices that constituted disincentive to Foreign DirectInvestment (FDI).

In our desire to ease these processes to attract foreign investmentsand generate employment, we took a key policy decision toautomate Expatriate Quota administration, through aPublic/Private Partnership arrangement, at no cost togovernment. The project involves the automation of theprocesses required in processing applications or requests for

expatriate quotas. When fully operational, all expatriate quotaapplications will be made on-line. The new arrangement hasenormous advantages of speedy transactions, improvedoperational effectiveness, improved revenue generation andcollection, reduction in transaction cost and the enthronement oftransparency.

New Visa Policy

Before the inception of this administration, Nigeria had avery rigid and restrictive visa policy that was not investorfriendly. The policy allowed only three months entry visasubject to renewal. Issuance of visas at entry points wasnon-existent; there was no categorization of entry visasalong business, tourists or investor classifications. Werealized that a vibrant visa policy is required to create theright environment for foreign investment. Accordingly, wehave taken some critical decision to bring some changesand possibly revolutionize our visa policy. This is to makeit responsive to the dynamics of our times. As a result ofour policy review,the following measures have been put in place:

The Nigerian Missions are now to start issuing one yearmultiple entry permit/visa to all deserving visitors andtourists who wish to visit Nigeria.

The Nigeria Immigration Service will issue 30 days non-extendable visitor’s tourists pass on arrival.

Nigerian Missions are now to ensure that they honourexpatriate quota approvals. They have a duty to ensurethat only expatriates with the pre-requisite qualificationsas stated in the quota approval letters are issued entryvisas.

Under the new visa regime there will be five (5)categories of visas, namely:

a) Visa at Points of Entryb) Short Visit Visac) Temporary Resident Visad) Employment Based Visae) Scarce Skills Transfer Visa

It is our sincere hope that our newvisa regime will effectivelyencourage Foreign DirectInvestment, tourism, business flowand, of course, generateemployment.

AUTHENTICATION OF TRAVEL DOCUMENTS:

Realising the need for speedy and efficient passengerclearance system at our airports we have adopted theInternational Civil Aviation Organisation Public KeyDirectory (ICAO-PKD) Global Platform. This is beinginstalled at all our international airports to provide theneeded facilities for the authentication of Nigerian e-passports and other electronic Machine Readable TravelDocuments (MRTD) of other countries.

BORDER CONTROL/CONTROL OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS/MONITORING OF NON-

NIGERIANS/EXPATRIATE QUOTAS AND VISAS

There is no gain-saying that the current security challenges beingfaced by the country is partly attributable to the influx of illegal andundesirable elements into the country through our vast borders. Inrecognition of this the Ministry, particularly through the NigeriaImmigration Service, has taken several measures to secure andpatrol our borders as well as monitor the activities of immigrants.

CLOSURE OF SOME BORDERS

Arising from the spate of bombings and general insecurity in thecountry, Mr. President, in a state-of-the Nation Address on 1st

January 2012, declared a State of Emergency in parts of some Statesof the Federation and ordered the closure of some borders.Sequel to Mr. President’s directive such borders were closedimmediately. Two Deputy Controllers General of Immigration weremandated to coordinate and monitor the closures in Borno and YobeStates, respectively. On 26th February 2012 I summoned the TopManagement of the Paramilitary Services and charged them tostrictly enforce the closure of the borders and repatriate all illegalimmigrants.

COLLABORATION WITH NEIGHBOURSON BORDER CONTROL

Cameroun,Niger Chad

It is important to note that unless our neighbourscollaborate with us it would be very difficult toeffectively patrol and control our vast borders, whereover 1497 irregular and 84 regular/legal entry routeshave been identified. It is in realization of this fact thatwe have, in recent times, entered into cooperationagreements with our neighbours, namely: Cameroun,Niger and Chad, on joint border patrol/control.Similarly, we are collaborating with the ECOWAS onimmigration and security issues within the sub-region.I have only recently returned from a meeting ofMinisters of Countries of the Lake Chad BasinCommission where the strengthening of the jointsecurity patrol was adopted.

I can confidently inform you that, following my directive of 26th

February, 2012 for the easing out of all illegal immigrants from thecountry, the Nigeria Immigration Service embarked on an exerciseof identifying screening profiling and easing out illegal aliensaccordingly. The following table indicates the achievements of theService in this regard since February, 2012: Foreigners Repatriated from Nigeria - 4,214

Foreigners Deported from Nigeria - 335

Foreigners Refused Entry into Nigeria- 16,998

Stowaways - 34

CONTROL OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

OTHER IMMIGRATION SERVICES

The Nigeria Immigration Service in the last one year received2,538 documents from Embassies/High Commissions forexamination and authentication by the Document Fraud Unit(DFU) of the Service.

1,247 persons were watch-listed by the Service.

3,298 Nigerians were refused departure for possession of doubtfultravel documents.

Eight (8) Foreign Missions benefited from the deployment of 44Immigration Attaches, thereby increasing the total number ofAttachees to Foreign Missions from 10 in 2010 to 54 as of today.

Immigration officers visited 51 countries on special e-passportintervention program in which a total of 1,385 e-passport bookletswere issued to eligible Nigerians in Diaspora without having to comehome.

So far the e-passport intervention scheme has been carried out in65 countries. The scheme is in line with Federal Government’spolicy of citizenship centred diplomacy.

Plans are in the works to establish service centres and dedicatedmobile lines for applicants who suffer any form of encumbrances toseek redress.

Since May 29, 2011, 8,910 Expatriate Quota positions wererenewed while 7 were restored, 317 were re-designated while 41were de-tagged, by the Citizenship and Business Department.

In addition, 157 Business Permits were granted while 10 wereamended.

1,156 Establishment Grants were issued.

And 2,565 additional Grants (fresh Quota) were issued.

PROTECTION OF LIVES AND PROPERTY

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Nigerian nation has witnessedincreased spate of bombings, terrorist attacks,kidnappings and armed robberies, never before seen inthis country. Lives of citizens and their properties as wellas government assets have come under greater threat. Thissituation has called for extreme vigilance, alertness andresponse preparedness on the part of all security Agencies.The Agencies under the Ministry of Interior havecollaborated with others to respond appropriately, withinthe limit of their capabilities, to these incidents andemergencies.

As you may all be aware, theFederal Fire Service is a firstresponder in all emergencies, beit fire or natural disaster.However the Federal Fire Service,as it stands today, operates onlyin Abuja and Lagos. This hasgreatly constrained its activities,especially in the face of thealmost comatose state of FireServices in the States where theyexist at all. Thatnotwithstanding, the Federal FireService has respondedimmensely well, to emergenciesin the country:

INTERVENTION IN EMERGENCIES:

In Abuja, the Service, between May, 2011 and today,responded to 42 fire related emergencies.

In all cases in Abuja and Lagos no life was lost andproperty worth millions of Naira were saved.

In addition to fire emergencies the Federal Fire Service,during the last one year has responded to severalemergencies in Abuja such that the UN building bombblast of August, 2011, the Christmas day bombing of thechurch in Madalla, the Police Headquarter bomb attack,etc.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, on itspart, has always been present in all emergencies all overthe country. The Corps standing Emergency ResponseTeam assisted in search and rescue operations,rehabilitation and provision of emergency centres in thedisaster areas in Lagos, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna and OsunStates.

The Corps has established a Disaster ManagementTeam in all the 22 Airports across the country. Thepurpose is to ensure effective management of aviationrelated emergencies.

To pre-empt fire emergencies; the Federal Fire Servicehas commenced the enforcement of fire safety regulationsby inspecting major buildings and facilities for complianceand risk assessments, beginning with Abuja.

The insecurity in the country is perhaps moresevere with regards to national assets. Oilpipeline and electricity cable vandalisations havein recent years become very big threats to thenation’s wealth and economic growth. TheNSCDC has been tackling this menace with itsofficers and men on foot, motor cycles, motorcars and even dog patrol through all nooks andcrannies of the country.

ANTI-VANDALISM INTERVENTIONS

In its very penetrative activity, which makes it uniqueamongst all the security agencies, the NSCDC has in thelast one year generated security reports that have beenvery useful to the security community in the country.The Corps maintains 24hrs surveillance overgovernment infrastructure, sites and other facilities toguard against attacks by criminals and vandals.In the period since May 2011, the Corps made thefollowing arrests relating to illegal oil bunkering activities:I. Suspects - 101II. VehiclesIII. Tankers/Trailers - 22IV. Buses - 8V. Cars - 3There are 156 cases pending in various courts overvandalism related offences.

PRIVATE SECURITY GUARDS COMPANIES IN THE SECURITY OF LIVES AND PROPERTY

The gravity of the security challenges facing us does notgive room for any stone to be left unturned in our efforts totackle the menace. Every citizen (individual or corporate)group, sector that counts itself on the side of good mustcontribute to the fight against this evil. It is in this lightthat the private security guards sector is being encouragedand sensitized. The Ministry, through the NSCDC, has in recenttimes introduced professionalism and competence into the sector.The Corps has maintained consistent and strict supervision andmonitoring of the activities of Private Guard Companies, to ensureconformity with guiding rules and regulations of operations. Belowis an overview statistics reflecting the regulatory activities of theNSCDC, with regards to the Private Guards Companies, betweenMay 2011 and now:

Total No. of licensed companies = 71Total No. of registered companiesawaiting license = 60Total No of companies sealed = 45Total No. of companies reopened = 5Total No. of licenses renewed = 301Total No. of companies upgradedfrom category ‘A’ to ‘B’ = 1Total No. of companiesdowngraded from ‘A’ to ‘B’ = 2

PROTECTION OF SOCIETY THROUGH SAFE CUSTODY AND REFORMATION OF THE INTERNED

In recent times the role of the Prisons Service in protecting societyfrom criminals has come more sharply into focus. Our prisonshave suddenly become sources of internal security threat, nothanks to the several incidents of jail breaks, fire incidents andarmed terrorist attacks. Our Prisons in Maiduguri, Kano, Bauchi,Enugu and Koton Karfe, amongst others, have come under attackwithin the last one year.

The reasons for the attacks on the Prisons and the jail breaks arenot far-fetched. The Prisons have been neglected in the past withlittle or no infrastructural development to match withmodernization and the increase in number of inmates. Thustoday we have prisons with colonial structures with very littleroom for humane containment. Added to this is that over 70% ofinmates are awaiting trial. These notwithstanding, we have takenmeasures to address the problem:

New modern prisons arebeing constructed.A storey building block ofcells has been constructed inKaduna Prison with capacityfor 112 inmates.Another storey buildingblock of cells for 212 inmateshas been completed in KanoCentral Prison.A 160 bed medium securityPrison has been completed andcommissioned in Ikot-Epene,Akwa-Ibom State. It must benoted that this world-classfacility was built incollaboration with the Akwa-Ibom State government.

A world class Prison has also been completed in Ado-Ekiti, incollaboration with the government of Ekiti State.

These collaborations with the two State Governments is thebeginning of a series of Prison relocation collaborative partnershiparrangements between the Federal and State Governments.

The NPS has acquired and deployed bio-metric equipment to 33prisons nationwide to take record of inmates.

Various security gadgets have also been acquired and installed inmost of our Prisons, including anti-bomb car scanners and wirelessradio communication equipment.

Armed squads have been posted to flash-point Prisons in thecountry to forestall Prison attacks and jail breaks.

Sequel to the attack on the Prison in Koto-Karfe, KogiState,I immediately inaugurated a 5-man Panel of inquiry tolook into the incident. The Panel submitted its report lastweek with far-reaching recommendations made. Iimmediately constituted a white Paper DraftingCommittee to advise within two weeks on therecommendations to be adopted. It is my strongconviction that when the recommendations of theCommittee are implemented, the Prison sector in Nigeriawill be revolutionized for good.

•Inspite of all the challenges confronting theprisons sector, I am pleased to report that ourrecords show a drastic reduction in recidivism (i.efreed criminals returning to prison) cases. Only2,500 cases were reported for 2011 as against 7,000in 2010.

CAPACITY BUILDING

Ladies and Gentlemen, much of the internalsecurity challenges facing this country today wereonly until very recently very alien to us. Thetechnology involved in many of these acts and theirorganization are very sophisticated. Therefore,there is the urgent need to build the requisitecapacities (human and equipment) andcapabilities to deal with the evil-doers in our midst.It is in recognition of this that, in the last one yearand continuing, the Ministry has embarked onintensive training of its personnel and theprocurement of appropriate technologies to stemthe tide.

Human Capacity Development

Following is a synopsis of the human capacity efforts and achievements of theMinistry and its Services in the last one year:A total of 277 personnel of the Ministry were trained in various specializedareas to enhance service delivery.

Over 1,300 officers and men of the NSCDC have undergone training in armsand light weapons handling.

Thousands of the Corps’ personnel have benefited from trainingprogrammes organized by its three colleges, namely: Civil Defence Academy,Sauka, Abuja; College of Peace and Disaster Studies, Katsina and College ofSecurity Management, Abeokuta.

Over 500 personnel of the Corps had overseas training in Italy, Israel, USA,UK, Egypt, Switzerland, Holland, Germany and several other countries in theperiod under review.

Some officers of the Corps have also been trained in Crisis ManagementProcedures and Contingency Planning organized by the Office of the NationalSecurity Adviser (NSA).

Furthermore, officers of the NSCDC have been involvedin simulation exercises with other Responder Agencies inareas of flood disaster and low intensity conflicts atCommand and Staff College, Jaji in Kaduna State.

For the Nigeria Prison Service, 300 personnel wererecruited to strengthen its operations.

Over 2,287 officers of the Prison Service were trained on

new performance enhancement courses.

And regarding the NigeriaImmigration Service, tostrengthen its personnel capacitya total of 2,808 officers of theInspectorate and Assistant Cadreshave been recruited, trained anddeployed, particularly to borderpatrol duties.

251 officers and men of theService equally received combattraining in Gwoza, Borno State.They have since been deployed forJoint Task Force (JTF) duties inBorno and Yobe States.

Eight (8) Immigration officers recently returned from a Train-the-TrainerCourse on Border Control in Italy.

Last but not the least, I am pleased to inform you that the National FireAcademy in Sheda, Abuja, has commenced training activities, with the firstset of graduates passing out on 27th January, 2012.

To strengthen its manpower position, 182 personnel were recruited andtrained.

Three (3) senior officers were trained in Disaster Management while six (6)others were trained overseas on Response to Bomb Explosions.

Another six (6) personnel of the Federal Fire Service undertook training onChemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Awareness.

In addition to training its own personnel the Federal Fire Service trainedpersonnel from other organizations on Basic Professional Fire Fighting.These organizations include the NNPC, the Nigeria Security, Printing andMinting Company.

Acquisition of Equipment

Even in the face of acute limitations of funds, theServices have acquired valuable equipments in thelast one year to enhance their operationalcapacities:

The Nigeria Immigration Service:

Acquired twenty-four (24) Peugeot 307 cars asoperational vehicles.

Procured a large cache of firearms to improvesecurity and borders patrols.

•HP CDAN Voice and Data Radios have beenprocured and being installed in 59 immigrationlocations nationwide. This will provide effectivecommunication links between the State Commandsand Border Control Posts.

The Federal Fire Service:In conjunction with a private company on aPublic Private Partnership arrangement,developed an automatic fire alarm systemwhich activates as soon as smoke is detectedand sends alert to the Service.

•The Nigeria Securityand Civil DefenceCorps:

- established amodern Dog Kernelwith veterinary clinicand other facilities. Ithas capacity for over500 snifer dogs whichhelp to detectexplosives,ammunitions, narcoticsand for crowd control.

Revenue Generation

Although revenue generation is not one of the mandates of theMinistry of Interior, it has been contributing its modest quota to thenation’s coffers. Accordingly in the last one year the Ministry and itsServices have generated revenue as follows:

The Citizenship and Business Department:

between May 2011 and March 2012 generated N10,354,000 on Citizenshipmatters, N128,181,000 on Expatriate Quota allocations and N50,390,500 fromregistration of marriages.

The Nigeria Immigration Service:generated N5,765,652,935 from issuance of immigration facilities$11,470,312.14 (US Dollars) was generated by Foreign Missions for issuance ofimmigration facilities$729,600 (US Dollars) was recovered as Airline debts (fines) from Airlines forbringing into Nigeria inadmissible foreigners.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps:generated N72 million

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) AND LEGAL AGREEMENTS

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, inrecognition of the fact that the instrument oflaw is and will continue to play a vital role inthe Transformation Agenda of the PresidentJonathan Administration as well ascomplement our efforts in achieving internalsecurity, the Ministry of Interior, within theperiod under review, successfullyconsummated the following legalagreements.

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) FOR PARAMILITARY VILLAGES.

The current security challenges in our nation call foradequate, timely, speedy and spontaneous deployment ofmen and materials to emergency locations. Similarly,minimum basic comfort is absolutely necessary ifoptimum performance is to be expected from ourpersonnel. It is in realization of these variables and thefact that other Security Agencies have already achievedsame, that my Ministry initiated the idea of ParamilitaryVillages across the 36 States of the Federation and theFederal Capital Territory. An MoU has been signed withMessrs Ibyuan Resources Limited to deliver 100,000Housing Units under this arrangement. Any momentfrom now, the foundation laying ceremony for the AbujaParamilitary Village will take place.

CONSULAR ISSUES

In the middle of December last year, His Excellency, the SouthAfrican High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Kingsley Mawabolo paidme a courtesy call, at which we had fruitful discussions in respect ofConsular Services between Nigeria and South Africa. We bothpledged to strengthen Consular relations between the two countries,emphasizing that the revitalization of the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission will greatly enhance Consular Servicesbetween the two countries. Surprisingly, and sad enough, SouthAfrica deported over 125 Nigerians just on the heels of our promises.However, in the spirit of African brotherhood, we have put thatincident behind us. I want to use this opportunity to call on theSouth African Government to reciprocate the Nigerian gesture onthe new Visa Regime of the Federal Government which allowsgenuine businessmen and tourists from South Africa access toNigeria Visa at Entry Points.

It may interest you to note that earlier this year too, a Britishdelegation accompanied by His Excellency, the British HighCommissioner to Nigeria, His Excellency, the HighCommissioner Andrew Lloyd and led by the Internal Director ofUnited Kingdom Border Agency, Mr. Jonathan Sedgwick were inthe country to discuss critical areas of cooperation with Nigeriaon consular matters as well as the menace of terrorism. It willbe recalled that in June 2005 a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) between Nigeria and the United Kingdom onImmigration Matters was signed in Abuja. The purpose of theMoU is the provision of a legal framework to regulate existingconsular cooperation and interface between the two countries.It also provides instructions on immigration returns andtreatment of returnees in line with international best practicesas well as respect for human and peoples’ rights and dignity.Furthermore, the MoU provides for bi-annual meeting, which isaimed at reviewing its implementation.

PRISONER TRANSFER AGREEMENT (PTA)

One of the topical issues which requires an update and clarificationis the issue of prisoner transfer between the UK and Nigeria othercountries. I would like to say that in September last year, adelegation of Nigerian officials met with their United Kingdomcounterpart. At that meeting, it was agreed that critical steps on thematter are hinged on passage of the relevant laws, i.e. PrisonsExchange Bill currently pending at the National Assembly. Withoutholding brief for the NASS, let me assure all of you that there is thepolitical will and commitment in the National Assembly towards thepassage of the Bill, and that they are working tirelessly to ensure thatthe Bill is passed. As soon as this is done, other relevant actionsrequired in this direction will flow. It is important to add that thereare a number of technical issues to be resolved before the PrisonerExchange Bill is finally passed. These include, the issue of prisonerconsent, the nature of the offence, among others.

COLLABORATION OF FOREIGN COUNTRIES WITH NIGERIA IN OUR NATIONAL SECURITY CHALLENGES.

In February 2012, I received a delegation of the European Union, ledby His Excellency, Ambassador David Macrel, who expressedconcern over the current state of insecurity in the country andpledged the readiness of the European Union to help overcomethese challenges. While we welcome the good intention of theEuropean Union towards Nigeria, let me assure all member-countries of the European Union and other representative member-States of the international community that Nigeria will spare noeffort in bringing the crises to an end and that Nigeria still remainsthe best investment destination in Africa. Similarly, my Ministrywitnessed the signing of an agreement between Nigeria andCameroon last February on Joint Border Patrol between the twocountries. The agreement was coordinated by the Ministry ofForeign Affairs. We have similar agreement with the Niger Republic,the Republic of Benin and the Republic of Chad.

CHALLENGESLadies and Gentlemen, this briefing thus farwould have undoubtedly exposed theenormous challenges facing the Ministry atthis point in time. It is apparent that thechallenge of Nigeria right now is ourchallenge. How do we stop the perpetratorsof violence in our midst so that we can makethe necessary progress to take us to ourdream of becoming one of the 20 mostdeveloped economies by the year 2020.

FUNDING

Juxtaposing the funding demands forprovision of internal security under thecurrent threats against the requiredfunding for other developmental needsobviously makes funding a seriouschallenge.

OBSOLETE LEGISLATIONS:

The security sector needs reforms in order tokeep pace with the Transformation Agenda ofgovernment and the ever changing face ofglobalization. However these reforms arebeing hindered by obsolete laws in someareas, for which Bills have since been sent tothe National Assembly for consideration.

NIGERIA PRISONS SERVICE BILL:This Bill which seeks to amend thePrisons Act is pending in theNational Assembly.

BILL TO AMEND THE IMMIGRATION ACT:

This Bill which seeks to amend the old Act,which has inherent role conflicts betweenthe Ministry and other Agencies, ispending in the National Assembly.

LACK OF ADEQUATE COOPERATION FROM OTHER AGENCIES:

Some other Agencies of government also bearresponsibility for internal security, apart fromthe Ministry of Interior. To achieve effectiveinternal security maximum synergy has to becultivated between the Ministry of Interiorand all other Agencies involved.Unfortunately this is not so for now. It ishoped that when Agencies, MDAs andParastatals are properly re-aligned, thisapparent inter-agency rivalry will stop.

LACK OF NATIONAL UNITY AND COHESION

One serious challenge facing Nigeria today, I must mentioned, isthat unity and cohesion. The Regular feature of Nigeria’snational life is the attempt of Nigeria’s men of yesteryears tryingto cultivate Nigerians to abuse the person and seek toundermine the authority of the president of the federal republicof Nigerian. Yet these are men whose actions or lack of themlead Nigeria to the present predicament that the nation ispassing through.The actions and utterances of these men, who where ingovernment or operated the levels of power is dividing Nigeriaalong ethnic and political lines thereby engendering disunityand rocking the very fabric of the nation.This ministry will collaborate with other relevant MDAs, such asthe national orientation agencies to cause the necessary valuethe re-orientation of Nigerians .

THE WAY FORWARD:

Ladies and Gentlemen, there are bound to bechallenges in the life of nations. These challengesare expected to serve as necessary catalysts in ourdesire to attain a more equitable and just society. Itis in thus light that we in the Ministry of Interiorare looking at the challenges confronting thenation today and charting appropriate lines ofaction to overcome. And we will overcome.

We have articulated specific action for theshort (2012) medium (2012-2015) and long (2015-2020) terms.

SHORT-TERM ACTIONS.PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS:

To go round some of the funding challenges, is theshort term, we are exploring all possible avenues ofpartnering the private sector.

(a)In addition to some arrangements that havealready been mentioned, the outsourcing of visaprocessing for Nigerian visa, through visaapplication centres, under a private partnershipis being considered.An arrangement with a consortium ofAmerican companies for the construction of 212Fire Fighting Stations across the country is inthe works.

(b)The engagement of relevant stakeholders onany subject usually addresses grey areas,remove suspicions, promote understanding andallows easier achievement of goals andobjectives.

Therefore we:Are engaging stakeholders in all areas of ouroperations, including the National Assemblyand other MDAs responsible for internalsecurity with a view to synergizing better.

BORDER CONTROL

The Nigeria Immigration Service will establishmodern Border Plazas in the major entry pointsinto the country. Secondary border posts are to beestablished as well.The Aircrafts of the Nigeria Immigration Serviceare being rehabilitated and reactivated for moreefficient day and night patrols.A new Passport Office fully devoted to theissuance of e-passports has been completed nearthe NIS Headquarters and will soon becommissioned.

(C)Safety of Lives and PropertyThe NIS and the NSCDC have set upanti-bomb squads to take proactiveactions in detecting explosive devicesbefore they are detonated. The squadsare being strengthened.

MEDIUM-TERM STRATEGIES

In the medium-term, 2012-2015, the Ministry of Interiorwill, hopefully, be strategically repositioned to deliver likeits counterparts in other developed nations of the world.

The Nigerian public and private sectors will work closelytogether in a shared agenda of securing lives and property.This will involve all security agencies, the Nigerian Police,the States, Private Organisations civil Society and LocalAuthorities. The Ministry will achieve this throughincreased collaborations and stakeholder engagements.

Our borders will be better monitored through e-surveillance techniques, involving satellite. This will beachieved through a Public/Private Partnership.

The Federal Fire Service would have been completelyre-structured with presence in all the geopolitical zonesof the country.

More modern Prisons would be built to address theproblem of congestion. The Federal Government wouldhave reached out to more States to collaborate in thisdirection. More specific measures will taken to addressover congestion along the following line

Alternative dispute resolution

Application of alternative / non-custodialimprisonment

Establishment of criminal courts in large prisons.

LONG-TERM STRATEGIES

In the long term the Ministry and its agencies incollaboration with all other stakeholders wouldhave fully explored all the internationaldimensions of the internal security challenges.More international collaborations would be madeto deal with the problem from its global origins.

CONCLUSION:

Mr. Chairman, Honourable Ministers, DistinguishedLadies and Gentlemen of the Press, the challenges ofinternal security in this our beloved country is today verydaunting. Non-the-less it behoves on every law abidingand peace loving Nigerian to rise up to the challenge. Wehave no other country but Nigeria to call our own and sowe cannot sit on the fence and expect some other personsto protect us. We must fight to secure Nigeria forNigerians and defeat this evil called terrorism.It is obvious that government alone cannot fight this fight,we cannot continue to watch our national assets andinfrastructure that have been put in place over the yearsbeing wantonly destroyed by these evil misguided peoplein our midst. Even lives that constitute our valuablelabour force are being wasted in dastardly manners.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it should concern all whenprecious lives are wasted with impunity. Everyfamily has lost one dear one or the other andbecause terrorism and terrorist attacks have noborders, Muslims and Christians alike are victims;Hausas and Ibos alike are victims; Yorubas and theFulanis alike are victims. Nigeria is a victim. Wemust all rise to defeat this evil.

Be that as it may, I wish to assure Nigerians that nomatter the challenges government will always standup to defend its citizens and territorial borders, inline with its constitutional responsibility.

THNAK YOU ALL FOR LISTENING. GOD BLESS NIGERIA