Search For Common Ground, Organizes Refresher Training For Security Agents In Bayelsa.

 

In order to deepen peace in the Niger Delta Region, Search for Common Ground an international organization saddled with the job of deepening peace in the Niger Delta has organized a  refresher training for security agents in Bayelsa State.

This it did knowing the contribution of the security agencies as it regards to ensuring peace in the region.

With the  opening ceremony  held on Wednesday in Yenagoa for thirty security personnel, Search for Common Ground with support from European Union gathered the participants that will be trained again for three days.

Speaking to journalists at the event, Phillip Kalio, capacity building and training coordinator, Search for Common Ground, maintained that the training was  aimed at bringing re- orientation to security  agents "and bringing them to a point where they will  understand that their services require employment of human rights in their engagement with citizens in the society.

He said the  essence  of the  training was for them  to have understanding  of the principles of human centered security and the ability to deploy that in building collaboration and trust with the citizens.

Security agencies he said cannot be effective and efficient in their operations  without information and the source of information  "is from the citizens  and people within their area of operations  adding  that if there is a trust in the people, there is proper collaboration and communication confidence in that saying that  "Police is our friend, then they will be able to get information from the society and they will be able to carry out their job of reducing criminality and fighting against crimes in the society.

He continued:" In this three days, we expect them to understand the human rights aspect of carrying out their job. They should understand the importance of collaboration  with the communities they are working with. Mostly, they should understand that early warning and early response is very critical in their work and it is people that they are securing that will enable  them to get the information that they need.

On the achievements of Search, he said: "We are very bold to say that within the months that we have operated, the project has started achieving it's objectives and it's targets. Within the communities of operations across the states, we have very many success stories of reduced criminality, of community collaboration and that required trust among all the security formations.

"We are creating that synergy between the security agencies in doing their job. The issue of illegal bunkery  activities we were having in the state, through this programme, it  has  drastically reduced.

In most communities where leadership crisis were existing, Kalio said that the  project has been able to unite them and reduce the systemic drivers of conflict in their communities adding that "It is amazing to hear from the security agencies here that through search training, they have learnt alot and have dropped some attitudes.

"It is important to know that change is inevitable and you can see that change is possible and these are most of the things that we bring to them. The narrative must be rewritten. We must start from ourselves because if you can't transform yourself, you can't transform the next person.
I'm so happy with what they are saying that they were very bad but they have changed and a lot more collaboration is coming out among themselves and the society."

Also speaking, Kengkeng Ati, the capacity  building and training officer Search,said  that the group was working in  specific communities across the Niger Delta Region adding the activity is one out of many others that has to do with all the community stakeholders.

Ati stated that  the entirety of the community eco system in the grassroots has to be affected for Search to achieve her aim of peace building and a very functional early warning and early response system.

He said that  the reason for retraining the security agents  is for them to see human centered principles of doing what they know how to do   best "and connecting our early warning and early response structures to the conventional security architecture towards combating criminality  and violence across the Niger Delta Region.

Behavioral change  he disclosed doesn't come at once but it takes time and continuous hammering on the same issue for some time.

"Some of the security agencies have been through some behavioral change through some measures of training before. Some of them are participants in Interpol activities . Having been here,  we also put in modules that point to that to ensuring that what they do at the grassroots is effective and they modernize the way that they carry out their activities.

"The success story points in the activities of the security agencies and this was done through the cohesion where we created the scenario where they can bond.Some of the action plans have shown that some of the security agents  are embarking on town hall meetings and expanded stakeholder engagement towards peace building and that has been a direct product of the trainings that we have done.

Ati said that Search recorded some achievements through "our early warning and early response system because of the connection that has been done,we see security actors responding more aggressively.

"We also see community people ready to offer information. We have seen that happen across the communities and we are ready to double our effort to ensure that they are actualized and repeated in several other places across the Niger Delta Region.

He advised  the participants to  follow the ethics and principles that govern their job advising them  to do their job with a human face knowing that human rights must be respected "and it is the way in which they carry out their job that forms the perception of the society about them."

Speaking as a participant,  Musa Mohammed, the Police Public Relations Officer, Bayelsa State thanked the organizers of the training and maintained that the training will actually go a long way to help the law enforcement officers in Bayelsa State "because the government cannot do it alone.

He asked for more support  from partners and good individuals so that they will come together, brainstorm and come up with very good ideas in ensuring that the environment is peaceful adding that  what the European Union through Search has done for us is very encouraging.

"We urge other stakeholders and donors to come  and partner with the security agencies for a good service delivery and protection of lives and properties.

"The police remain a non political organization and nobody is above the law in Nigeria so we are being guided by law. We just have to be remodeling our selves that we should do the right thing at all cost to avoid law consequences.

"All the trainings  have impacted so much in me.I'm a beneficiary of this programme and my skill has improved and I urge them to do more for us. If there will be a way where more officers can be reached through this programme so that more will be trained to have good  service delivery to members of the public, it will go a very long way.

"Through this training, there have been more collaboration among the sister agencies to sustain the  peace we are enjoying in the state."

Also Chris Agumou of  Nigeria Civil Defense Corps  said that the training was a way of sensitizing the security agents and the public at large.

He said that the human rights lecture  has made the security agents to know that human beings are not animals.

"Also the torture aspect has reduced drastically through all these trainings. Search for Common Ground should continue this programme at least on monthly basis especially  for the security agencies and even for civilians. It will help to reduce criminality and respect human dignity.

"Oil theft has not all that reduced due to hunger in the country but  the training only intensified the Nigerian Civil Defense Corps to work harder against vandalism and oil theft.
For now you hardly see people going to carry out those activities."

Ekimie Jonah Public Relations officer Nigeria Immigration services Bayelsa State Command  in his submission stated that his organization  deals with immigrants adding  that "you can't take it away that some are doing what they ought not to  do.

He said "For me to  be here, it will help me to work in synergy with other sister agencies. No organization can work alone. This kind of programme gives us the opportunity to know one another so that  if you see any situation, you just put a call across to  the agency that is in charge of that and the problem will be handled."