How inter-agency rivalry is threatening national security
…Nigeria records over 200 clashes, 60 deaths
BY BARTH EZE & ORIAKU IJELE
Nigeria’s internal security may be under threat due to inter-agency rivalry amongst security organisations in the country, Sunday Times’ investigation has revealed.
Only this year, inter-agency wars have claimed no fewer than 10 security personnel and properties belonging to some affected security agencies worth millions of naira have been destroyed across the security agencies.
The clashes have always been from the Department of the Security Services, DSS, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Immigration Services, National Correctional Services, NCS, to Nigeria Customs Service, NSC, to Nigeria Air force, NAF, Nigeria Army, NA, Nigeria Navy, NA, National Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, and the Nigeria Police Force, NPF.
Security experts and analysts are worried by the spate of killings and maiming being carried out by security agencies against themselves, while working for one country.
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In 2023, alone, over 10 clashes have been reported and over eight personnel were said to have lost their lives while several others were wounded in the tango.
Our investigation revealed that inter agency clash was first reported in Nigeria in 1977 in Port Harcourt between personnel of Nigeria Police and Nigerian Army.
Several decades after, over 200 clashes between inter-agency clashes have been reported involving while over 50 personnel have been killed while more than 500 sustained various injuries and properties destroyed
Former Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (rtd.), said security agencies engaged in superiority battles in the recent past.
He explained that they were either fighting to warm themselves into the hearts of Nigerians or to be seen as the most effective service.
According to him the, the ministry had put an end to that and had strengthened the cooperation among the agencies.
“In the recent past, security agencies in Nigeria always competed to emerge as the masses’ favorite or the ones that are most effective in terms of discharging their responsibilities. They battle each other to assert superiority and dominance.
“The ministry made concerted efforts to strengthen inter-agency cooperation and collaboration,” he said.
It’s a common report on monthly basis of reports of cases of violent clashes involving personnel of Nigeria Police and Nigerian Navy, between the Nigeria Police and Nigerian Air force, between Nigeria Police and National Security and Civil Defence Corps, and between Nigeria Police and Nigerian Custom Service, etc.
Our investigations showed that soldiers-police clashes are the most prominent of them all, with its attendant consequences of casualties, losses and confusion that accompanied it.
Last week, there was a confrontation between members of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and officers of the Department of State Services (DSS) on Monday, December 4, at the Edo Specialist Hospital in Benin.
The clash allegedly started when DSS officials brought in one of their men who had collapsed during a meeting in their office, and the medical staff reacted in an allegedly unprofessional manner.
The Chief Security Officer of Government House and the police, who were called from the Oba Market Police Station, allegedly restored calm and peace.
At the end of the chaos, several people, including private security guards and female NSCDC personnel were injured.
According to an official of the DSS, “We were in a meeting when the person we brought to the hospital slumped, and he was rushed to our health facility to check his pulse. We then rushed him to the Edo Specialist Hospital, which is the closest to our office, but the reception we got there was poor.
“It was our people that had to bring our colleague down from the vehicle. When you go to the hospital, courtesy demands that you bring the patient down and attend to him or her; at least show commitment, but right in the car, they said they cannot carry him and we have to carry him down ourselves.”
The Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. David Odiko, said although the DSS staff refused to acknowledge the patient’s death, the attending physician had swiftly attended to him.
“I was not in the hospital when the incident happened because I was in the court for a case. It was from there that they called me, and when I got to the hospital, they had left, but I met policemen on the ground.
“They brought him as an emergency case. He was said to have slumped, and the doctor on duty went to check, and he said he met the guy lying on the seat of the car and that the patient wasn’t breathing.
“He couldn’t see the chest and abdomen moving, then he proceeded to check if there was still a pulse and heartbeat which were also absent. He said he still proceeded to do CPR, but there was no response.
“The diagnosis the doctor made was that he was brought in dead, and they said they were not going to take that, and they moved him into our facility and dropped him on the floor. I was told that another group of personnel injured the Civil Defence personnel that were on duty on her head.”
Last month, some soldiers attacked the police command headquarters in Yola North Local Government Area of the state. The development led to the death of a police inspector, Jacob Daniel.
While reacting to the development, Fintiri in a statement said an “emergency security meeting” was called over the clash, stating that the resolution from the meeting was for the “commitment to justice and collaboration for the peace of Adamawa and Nigeria”.
“Addressed an emergency security meeting in Yola following the regrettable clash between Nigerian Army and Police,” the post on his X handle read.
“The conflict near Target Junction has been resolved, with a commitment to justice and collaboration for the peace of Adamawa and Nigeria. “My condolences for the loss of one officer from both sides. We urge restraint to prevent a recurrence.”
Earlier this year, Department of State Services (DSS) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), clashed when the DSS allegedly mounted a blockade on the EFCC Lagos office by operatives of the security agency.
Operatives of the DSS reportedly prevented staff of the Commission from gaining access to their offices on Tuesday, May 30.
According to reports, the EFCC and the DSS share office spaces in the building at No. 15A Awolowo Road, Ikoyi.
It was gathered that the EFCC staff, were carrying out their duties calmly on Monday, May 29, believing that the DSS agents were there to keep the peace during the inauguration.
However, they were surprised on Tuesday morning when the DSS officials prevented them from gaining access to the premises.
The DSS responded to the situation on its official Twitter page on Tuesday, claiming there is no rivalry between the Service and the anti-graft organisation.
In a statement signed by spokesperson of the DSS, Peter Afunanya, the security agency said it did not stop EFCC staff from having access to their offices adding that the building in question belonged to it.
“It is not correct that the DSS barricaded EFCC from entering its office. No. It is not true. The Service is only occupying its own facility where it is carrying out its official and statutory responsibility.
“By the way, there is no controversy over No 15A Awolowo Road as being insinuated by the media. Did the EFCC tell you it is contesting the ownership of the building?
“I will be surprised if it is contesting the ownership. Awolowo Road was NSO headquarters. SSS/DSS started from there. It is a common knowledge. It is a historical fact. Check it out,” the statement said.
The DSS reiterated that there was no rivalry between it and the EFCC over and about anything.
“Please do not create any imaginary one. They are great partners working for the good of the nation. Dismiss any falsehood of a fight,” the DSS added.
But while reacting, the EFCC described the alleged siege on its Lagos office by the DSS as shocking.
The EFCC claimed that the action of the DSS has wider implications for the nation’s fight against economic and financial crimes.
The EFCC’s reaction was contained in a statement signed by the then Head of the Publicity, Wilson Uwujaren.
“This development is strange to the Commission given that we have cohabited with the DSS in that facility for 20 years without incident.”
The anti-fraud commission said it had cohabited with the DSS in the same facility for 20 years without any fracas.
“By denying operatives access to their offices, the Commission’s operations at its largest hub with over 500 personnel, hundreds of exhibits, and many suspects in detention have been disrupted,” the statement read.
“Cases scheduled for court hearing today have been aborted, while many suspects who had been invited for questioning are left unattended. Even more alarming is that suspects in detention are left without care, with grave implications for their rights as inmates.”
According to the EFCC, the siege was inconsistent with the synergy expected of agencies working for the same government and nation and noted that there are ongoing discussions on the matter.
As that wasn’t enough, DSS and prison officials fight in court over the former Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Godwin Emefiele’s custody.
Reports say officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) and prison officials from the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) fought on the premises of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, over who would take custody of Godwin Emefiele.
DSS operatives dragged an official of the NCS out of the court allegedly started hitting him as officials of both government agencies engaged in a brief clash.
Recall that the court granted Emefiele ₦20 million bail and ordered that he be released upon fulfilling the bail conditions. The DSS, however, insisted on detaining him.The clash took place at the premises of the Federal High Court, Lagos.
The secret police had arraigned Emefiele on a two-count charge bordering on alleged illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
After court proceedings, Justice Nicholas Oweibo granted bail to Emefiele, ordering that the ex-CBN Governor be remanded in a correctional facility until he perfects his N20 million bail condition.
But because the DSS, were not satisfied with decision of the court, their operatives laid siege to the corridors of the chamber and the entire premises, putting their vehicle at standby to re-arrest Emefiele.
Emefile refused to step out of the court room, while his lawyers made frantic effort to mobilise officers of the Nigerian Correctional Service to take him. After hours of waiting, Emefiele’s lawyers left. Thereafter, more armed NCoS personnel arrived with a senior officer and attempted to take Emefiele.
In the process, fight broke out when the DSS men rough-handled a commander of the Correctional Service, tore his buttons, and shoved him out of the chambers, insisting they had orders to take Emefiele, notwithstanding the court’s injunction.
As the struggle over Emefiele continued, the Correctional Officers boarding their vehicles and zoomed off, leaving Emefiele in the hands of the masked DSS squad.
Human Rights Lawyers, known as Lawyers in Defence of Democracy (LIDD), criticized the DSS Director, Yusuf Bichi, over alleged assault on the judiciary, prison officials and the media by the agency’s operatives.
The lawyers also condemned the re-arrest of Emefiele after a judge had ordered that he should be remanded at a correctional centre pending the perfection of his bail conditions.
The lawyers in a statement by their leader, Okere Kingdom, called on President Bola Tinubu to prove he has regard for the rule of law by suspending and ordering the arrest of Bichi.
They insisted that DSS doesn’t have the constitutional backing to re-arrest Emefiele until he perfects his bail conditions.
The statement reads in part: “This constant assault on the judiciary by the DSS is totally unacceptable. What played out at the court today is unacceptable. Bichi needs to be arrested and sent to prison. The secret police has made a habit of continuously disrespecting the rule of law. President Bola Tinubu should save democracy and the image of the judiciary by immediately ordering the arrest of the DSS DG.”
Also, few weeks ago, there was a faceoff between officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and some personnel of the Nigerian Air Force at the Kaduna Zonal Command of the anti-graft agency.
The NAF officials were said to have invaded the commission’s office in an attempt to release their colleagues earlier arrested by EFCC operatives for allegedly attempting to forcibly release fraud suspects from custody.
According to the anti-graft agency, its operatives arrested five suspects at an eatery located in the Barnawa area of the state following credible intelligence about their alleged internet-related fraud activities.
EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, in a statement gave the names of the suspected fraudsters as Favour Itung, Rachael Ande, Zuleiman Haruna, Abubakar Ismaila and Solomon Olobatoke.
He noted that after the sting operation, six military personnel who witnessed the operation at the eatery stormed its Kaduna Command and attempted to forcibly release the arrested fraud suspects but were subdued and detained over the security breach.
According to the anti-graft agency, the intruders are four Air Force personnel : Lawal Abdullahi, Chukwuma Christian, Alfa Suleiman and Emmanuel Ekwozor, and two students of Nigerian Air Force Institute of Technology, Chidera Anuba and Joseph Tokula.
The EFCC added that while in detention, there were inter-agency communication and discussions by the leadership of the EFCC and the NAF to resolve the matter.
The statement added, “Unfortunately, dialogue on the release of the combative Air Force personnel broke down on Friday, November 17, 2023, when some unruly NAF Officers stormed the Kaduna Command in a commando-style, to forcefully release their detained colleagues.
“The EFCC exercised restraint in the face of the provocation and flagrant abuse of power.
“The commission continued to engage with the leadership of the Nigeria Air Force and released the officers to the NAF Provost after they had been duly profiled.
“The EFCC wishes to assure the public that it will continue to carry out its statutory mandate of tackling all cases of economic and financial crimes, without let or hindrance.”
In Ekiti State, the Nigerian policemen, and soldiers were reportedly clashed in public over traffic violation, assault on policewoman in Ekiti in November
The argument however degenerated into a fisticuff, and the female officer called for backup.
It was gathered that the soldiers drove a motorcycle against traffic and were stopped by a female police officer.
But the army personnel reportedly insisted on being allowed to pass despite taking their wrong-way driving (contraflow driving).
The action led to an argument between the policewoman and the soldiers.
Reports said some armed policemen beat an unarmed soldier for allegedly assaulting the policewoman and tearing her uniform.
According to Sunday Abutu, Ekiti police spokesperson, who confirmed the incident, the two soldiers involved had been arrested and were undergoing investigation.
“Meanwhile, it’s a case of violation of traffic order and serious assault on a policewoman who was performing her lawful duty at the traffic by the two soldiers,” Abutu reportedly said.
“The two military private officers who were on motorcycle were cautioned by the policewoman after they reluctantly passed through one-way traffic. The caution provoked them and they decided to pounce on the policewoman and assaulted her, got her injured and tore her uniform.
“It took the effort of some civilians around to stop the soldiers from escaping before the police reinforcement arrived.”
Recall that in 2022, a police officer was beaten to death by soldiers.
The soldiers who were all attached to the Army Ordinance Corps of the 81 Division Nigerian Army based in Ojo, descended on two policemen and beat them up badly, leading to the death of one of them.
There were reports of the Nigerian Army in 2021 accusing police officers of killing and brutalising some of its personnel.
In a letter dated November 23, 2021, to all formations and units, the then-Chief of Army Staff called on military officers to “forward all recorded incidence of police brutality against personnel of the Nigerian Army.”
It was gathered that letter which was signed by Major General J. A. Ataguba and titled, ‘Evaluating Incidences of Police Brutality against Personnel of Nigerian Army,’
“The NA is constitutionally tasked to provide aid to civil authorities when called upon. This responsibility has occasioned conducting joint activities with members of the civil and paramilitary organizations. These joint operations with other security agencies particularly the Nigerian Police (NP) create occasions for the police to equate its hierarchy with the NA and this has often led to friction, especially at the lower levels,” the letter had read.
“This friction has occasionally led to bodily harm and in some cases death to our troops. This is in spite of the fact that the victims have been identified and established to be serving personnel.
“This Dept is therefore conducting an evaluation of these occurrences with a view to establishing the frequency and recommend possible remedial measures to stem the tide.
“Consequently, all NA corps, formations and establishments are please requested to forward all recorded incidence of police brutality against personnel of the NA.”
Nigerian policemen, and Immigration officers clash, and exchanged fire In Borno over ownership of outpost
The clash involved firing of different caliber of firearms which incited fear among local residents.
The clash was said to have taken place at a police outpost within a housing estate alongside the Maiduguri-Kano highway.
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has been occupying this outpost since 2014, due to a previous abandonment following repeated attacks on security personnel.
However, Borno police command ordered divisional police officers to reclaim all abandoned police outposts as part of an initiative to enhance the city’s security.
After the directive, the Bulunkutu Division police officers intended to reclaim the outpost from the immigration officials.
However, their attempt led to a chaotic situation when the NIS personnel denied them access.
It was gathered that the immigration officials were reported to be surprised by the sudden morning invasion without any prior notice and because of that they decided not to leave the outpost, even though it was marked with the Nigeria police insignia.
“The situation escalated when both parties began firing their rifles into the air, causing panic among the residents of the 777 housing estate. Many residents of the Estate who mistaking the confrontation for a Boko Haram attack, fled for their lives,” Manama posted.
“The situation was eventually deescalated by nearby Nigerian Army troops from the 33 Artillery, who intervened and calmed both the police and NIS officials.
“Additionally, a mediation team from the Crack Division, led by CSP Mohammed Ibrahim, was dispatched by the Commissioner of Police to address the disagreement between the two parties.”
Meanwhile, security experts are calling the Service chiefs and the National Security adviser to urgently address the inter-agency rivalry to forestall further clashes of the security agencies in Nigeria.
According to them, Nigeria is only country where its security agencies engage in war of superiority over the other leading to several deaths of security personnel.
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