PCN to Tinubu: Incessant Attack on Students Will Discourage Parents from Sending Children to School

• Ready to deploy personnel to educational institutions

•Provides continuous surveillance, intelligence gathering

Alex Enumah in Abuja

The Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN), has warned the incessant attack on educational institutions by bandits and kidnappers is capable of discouraging most parents from sending the wards to school.

Commandant of the Corps, Dickson Akoh, who sounded the warning, stated that if the President Bola Tinubu-led federal government fails to take drastic action, the development could jeopardize the future of Nigeria’s children and youth.

Akoh was speaking with journalists on Wednesday, in Abuja, on the ‘State of the Organization’ and commencement of the nationwide personnel revalidation exercise”.

“Meanwhile, we wish to use this medium to register our grave concern and stand in absolute solidarity with the nation over the incessant invasion of educational institutions and the kidnapping of students and staff across the country.

“This systemic criminal assault on our academic system, if left unchecked, threatens to completely undermine the fabric of our educational sector. It will not only induce severe psychological trauma and pervasive fear among students but will also profoundly discourage parents from sending their wards to schools and colleges, thereby jeopardizing the future of Nigerian youth”, Akoh said.

He disclosed that in view of the escalating insecurity across the country, most notably the frequent invasions, targeting, and kidnapping of staff and students, the urgent deployment of Peace Corps of Nigeria personnel to educational institutions has become an administrative and security imperative.

According to him, such initiative seeks to deploy a layered security framework that integrates grassroots monitoring with robust early-warning systems to detect and mitigate threats before they escalate.

“By training and deploying disciplined officers and men as specialized safety officers, the initiative addresses critical issues such as cultism, drug abuse, and unauthorized access, establishing a proactive, community-driven presence within schools and colleges to safeguard lives and property”, the commandant stated.

He claimed the PCN personnel who would be operating at the front-lines of educational institutions, “will focus primarily on continuous surveillance and intelligence gathering within school perimeters.

He added that by maintaining a constant, vigilant presence, the Corps is strategically positioned to identify vulnerabilities, track suspicious activities, and detect potential security breaches by intruders.

The commandant noted the critical, real-time intelligence will be seamlessly and rapidly transmitted to conventional security agencies, creating a vital link that enables a rapid, coordinated response to neutralize threats before harm can befall the academic community.

“Central to this model is its perfect alignment with Nigeria’s broader Safe Schools Strategy, providing a sustainable, cost-effective solution to the current security gaps in the educational sector.

“By bridging the operational gap between school administrations and formal security agencies, the Peace Corps ensures that information sharing is instantaneous and actionable.

“Beyond physical protection, this integrated approach incorporates peace education and psycho-social support, effectively addressing the root causes of delinquency while establishing a secure, peaceful environment conducive to academic excellence and national development”, he added.

Meanwhile, Akoh disclosed that the Corps has commenced a comprehensive nationwide revalidation exercise of its personnel, as part of efforts at updating its records and harmonizing human resources capacity with modern institutional standards.

Observing the exercise marks a defining milestone in the evolutionary trajectory of the PCN since its inception, the commandant stressed that, “This is not merely a routine administrative check; it is a vital, non-negotiable audit aimed at updating our records and harmonizing our human resource capacity with modern institutional standards”.

Speaking further, Akoh noted the exercise which is also in direct response to the prevailing security challenge requires personnel to submit their National Identification Number (NIN).

“Integrating the NIN into our centralized database is a critical measure to eliminate anonymity, prevent identity fraud, and provide absolute assurance to state security agencies and the public regarding the integrity of our members”, he said.

According to Akoh, every officer must be traceable, verifiable, and legally anchored to the national identity database, so as to ensure that their ranks remain untainted by elements inimical to national peace.