The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on Sunday said it would soon begin biometric data-capturing of house girls, security guards and drivers.

It said this was part of its efforts to checkmate crimes and other nefarious activities in the country.

The NSCDC Commandant General, Abdullahi Gana, disclosed this while addressing stakeholders from some private guard companies in Maiduguri.

Gana said that the NSCDC was currently sponsoring a bill at the national assembly that would give the private guards’ security sector the mandate to checkmate various illicit activities across the country.

“Very soon, NSCDC will be licensing vendors as contained in its bill before the national assembly.

“All guards must be registered with private guards’ security companies,’’ he said.

He said that the data capturing would enable the corps to know everybody with a view to safeguarding the country and its citizens from criminals hiding under the guise of foreigners.

He said that in the past, most private guard companies in the country were operated by foreigners who were hiding under such platforms to perpetrate various criminalities.

“When we came on board; we said henceforth, no foreigner should operate a private guard company. We then agreed that only retired military, police or army officers should run such organisations,” he said.

He said that till date, foreigners were still employed as securities in private homes which posed another danger.

“We realised that 25 per cent of our “Mai Guards” in Lagos, Borno, Kaduna, Sokoto and Abuja are foreigners. Most of them will tell you they are from the Republic of Benin, Chad, and Niger Republic and so on.

“We need to have their biometric data. They must have referees so that we know whom they are in case of any incident,” he said.

He said that before long, all housemaids and drivers in the country would be registered under the private security guard companies.

He said that would make it difficult for any of them to kidnap the children of their bosses and be demanding millions of naira as ransom.

“You have a very big task ahead of you. The army, police and the NSCDC cannot fight crime alone.

“The army have won the war against Boko Haram insurgency; it is now left for us to win the peace.

“How do we do that? You need to assist us with intelligence information.

“Security is not just for the uniform men alone. All hands must be on deck to nip all forms of criminality in the bud. There is no other alternative to peace. We must live in peace, “he said.

•Culled from Guardian report

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