The Nigeria Police Force has disclosed that 40,000 operatives of the Special Intervention Squad who are currently undergoing training, will be deployed to 10 states within the country starting with Katsina.
The Force also disclosed that the proposed Commanders that will be in charge of each squad will be trained in Mexico.
Recall that the SIS Unit of the force was birthed by the Inspector General of Police, Olukayode Egbetokun , on assumption of office in June, 2023 as a maiden initiative of his administration.
During a recent visit to Owerri, the Imo State capital, Egbetokun noted that the other 27 states will immediately follow the 10 pilot states that were selected based on the recent violent crime assessment conducted in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
However, in an interview with Punch News, the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, disclosed that the SIS will not operate like the defunct Special Anti-Kidnapping Squad.
Adejobi said, “The training of the Special Intervention Squad is still on, and the Inspector General of Police has organised training for the SIS Commanders, in a train-the-trainer course. One is ongoing, and another one will come up in Mexico, and the IG has given approval for that.
“We actually want to have enough training before deployment commences, but we are starting very soon with 10 states, while we then move state by state. We have picked some Commanders and instructors to train them, and those are the people who’ll be going to Mexico for training. And the IG has been able to get some equipment for the SIS to start operations.
“But we need to clarify that the SIS is not SARS. People have been asking questions about whether or not it will operate like SARS. No. The SIS are basically operational men, it is mostly Police Mobile Force operatives, CTU operatives, and our tactical squad operatives that will come together under the command of a very senior police officer, either an ACP or a CSP who will be the commander in each state, and they’re not going to be doing stop-and-search work or pursuing ‘Yahoo Boys’. They’re specifically for intervention purposes.
“It is only CPs that will call on the commanders to move their men to certain places for intervention. It’s not that a commander would say, ‘Oh, these people can pay me well, you guys should move there’. That’s not what it’s all about.
“The SIS is a very different squad, and the Standard Operating Procedures and Rules of Engagement are also different, and we are starting very soon. I can confirm that the IG added Katsina State amongst the 10 States, as the Katsina State Governor met with the IG, and also donated some vehicles to the SIS.”
