THE Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) says it has been using public relations and enlightenment to fight transnational crimes.
The NIS added that it is also engaging traditional rulers in various states to impede transborder crimes across the country.
This was disclosed by the agency’s public relations officer, Tony Akuneme, on Sunday, May 14, in Abuja.
Akuneme claimed that the NIS had met with local traditional leaders in border communities to reduce transnational crimes.
He added that the NIS had also met some traditional rulers like the Alake of Egba in Abeokuta and the Shehu of Borno, among others.
The idea, he explained, was to engage the border communities to make them know they have a stake in securing these borders.
“For me, it’s an extra mile. Apart from the regular policing of the borders by officers, we have also gone into public relations and then enlightenment.
“This is so, just to make sure that people don’t think it’s not their business but that everybody is involved in the issue of securing our borders,” he said.
Akuneme said that Nigeria had wide boundaries, and using technology and human resources was vital.
He continued by stating that the service had implemented MIDAS technology, being used to keep an eye on the activity at the borders.
MIDAS is being supported by other nations working with the NIS to ensure the borders were secure and under control.
However, The ICIR can confirm that the NIS is yet to complete the project four years after its approval. The electronic border surveillance systems project has been footdragging, thus, contributing to the influx of people from the unmanned areas.
In a recent report, The ICIR looked at how the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in 2019 approved N52 billion to purchase E-border surveillance systems for the country.
The project was part of efforts to ensure effective monitoring of the nation’s borders through technology.
Once fully implemented, the system will monitor and provide real-time information from major border posts in the country, but the project is yet to take off fully.
Ultimately, it was an effort to check the age-long porous border crisis bedevilling the country for years due to inadequate manpower.
Poor border axis management has reportedly been a persistent issue that has worsened Nigeria’s security.
It has also severely hindered economic operations in border settlements.
A reporter with the ICIR
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