Joint Border Task Force
The Joint Border Task Force operations at Seme border since last week has continued to make cross-border transactions harder. It affects haulage of goods and services in and out of Nigeria. Before the task force began its operations, there was not enough public enlightenment about it, hence many translated the activities at the border to […]
The Joint Border Task Force operations at Seme border since last week has continued to make cross-border transactions harder. It affects haulage of goods and services in and out of Nigeria. Before the task force began its operations, there was not enough public enlightenment about it, hence many translated the activities at the border to mean sudden closer of the border. Travellers arrived at the border only to be refused entry, leaving thousands of persons and vehicles stranded.
Movement was partially allowed for travellers with valid travel documents, like international passport or ECOWAS Travel Documents and valid National Identity Card. Clearing agents were barred from carrying out business transactions at the border. Since then, travellers, including businessmen and vehicle importers, have continued to count their losses.
The spokesman of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), Joseph Attah, said the Customs had issued an alert to inform the public about the closure. But it was apparent from the shock expressed by even regular travellers that the alert was not properly circulated. In an official statement, Attah said “As part of measures to secure Nigeria’s land and maritime borders, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) in collaboration with the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) as well as the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and other security and intelligence agencies a joint border security exercise code-named ‘EX-SWIFT RESPONSE’.
Attah also explained that the joint exercise was being coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) designed to hold in four geo-political zones: South-South, South-West, North-Central and North-West. It is expected that the exercise would promote inter-agency cooperation and increase preparedness to address trans-border security challenges, including terrorism, armed banditry, smuggling, proliferation of small and light weapons.
The idea of security alert at the country’s borders is a welcome development, but the agencies should have publicized the exercise enough to inform Nigerians about its implications for cross-border business activities. In this season of multiple security challenges, the country’s borders should be properly policed to ensure that criminals do not migrate from other West African countries into Nigeria. Within ECOWAS, it is believed that security is not water-tight at Nigeria’s borders the way it is at the entry points into other West African countries. If this Joint Task Force will help tighten security at Nigeria’s borders a lot would have been achieved.
We call of the security agencies to go beyond raising security alert at the formal or official borders. There is the urgent need to curtail the movement of persons and goods at the various porous borders that scattered all over Nigeria. The bloody campaigns by Boko Haram against the people and the Nigerian State have been enhanced by the ease with which the sect could hire, bring in fighters and illegal weapons into Nigeria. In the North-West, some of bandits who held the states captive came in from other countries, wreaked havoc and returned to their home countries. This is unacceptable. Now that security agencies have turned their attention to security at the country’s borders, the dangerous phenomenon of cross-border banditry should be tackled with all seriousness.
It is important that this joint operation is not a short-term exercise. There is need to put in place a permanent strategy to curtail illegal migration into the country. The Customs and Immigration Services are not unaware of the fact that many foreigners, riding on the crest of ECOWAS protocol, enter into the country without being properly documented. They take up jobs as artisans, motorcyclists, and petty traders, and illegal businesses without security agencies arresting and bringing them to book. Even if Nigeria assumes the role of Big Brother in Africa, there has to be a measure of control to check those who migrate into Nigeria. This task force is an opportunity for security agencies to put in place measures to curtail the flagrant abuse of Nigeria’s immigration laws.