President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared a nationwide security emergency, issuing a number of far reaching directives to secure the nation as soon as possible.
The president directed the Armed Forces, police, and intelligence services to immediately scale up manpower and operations in response to rising insecurity across several states.
In a State House statement, released on Wednesday, the President authorised the police and the army to embark on expanded recruitment drives, announcing that the Nigeria Police Force will take in an additional 20,000 officers, bringing its new total recruitment figure to 50,000.
He also approved the use of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camps as temporary training depots to fast-track police preparation.
Tinubu further ordered the Department of State Services (DSS) to deploy the already-trained forest guards and recruit more personnel to “flush out the terrorists and bandits lurking in our forests.”
“There will be no more hiding places for agents of evil,” he declared.
The President directed that police officers withdrawn from VIP protection duties be re-trained and dispatched to front-line areas where security pressures remain high.
Tinubu applauded recent joint operations that led to the rescue of 24 schoolgirls in Kebbi State and 38 abducted worshippers in Kwara State.
He assured that efforts were ongoing to free the remaining Catholic school students kidnapped in Niger State, along with other victims still held by armed groups.
Addressing the military, he commended their sacrifice while warning against “compromise, collusion, or negligence,” saying Nigerians were counting on them to restore peace nationwide.
Tinubu also called on state governments operating local security outfits to expect federal backing and urged the National Assembly to begin reviewing laws that would allow willing states to establish their own police forces.
He advised states to reconsider running boarding schools in remote, unsecured areas and encouraged churches and mosques in vulnerable regions to seek regular security presence during gatherings.
Reiterating his administration’s commitment to resolving herder-farmer conflicts, Tinubu urged herders’ associations to embrace ranching, end open grazing, and surrender illegal arms.
He noted that the newly created Ministry of Livestock was designed to help address the long-standing crisis.
The President expressed sympathy to families affected by recent attacks in Kebbi, Borno, Zamfara, Niger, Yobe, and Kwara States, and paid tribute to fallen military personnel, including Brigadier-General Musa Uba.
“Those who want to test our resolve should never mistake our restraint for weakness,” Tinubu said, calling on Nigerians to remain calm, vigilant, and cooperative with security agencies. “We are in this fight together, and together we shall win.”
