Dr Ahmed Audi, Commandant-General (CG) of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has disclosed that the corps is prepared to provide protection for Very Important Persons (VIPs) despite its low manpower.

Audi said this during the CG’s Quarterly meeting with senior officers on Tuesday at the NSCDC National Headquarters in Abuja.

According to him, despite the manpower of the corps which is about 63,000, the NSCDC remained dedicated in following the directive of President Bola Tinubu.

“The corps has keyed professionally to the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr President to ensure the protection of Nigerians and all Critical National Asset and Infrastructure (CNAI).

“Despite our size we are not complaining as this assignment is an assignment the corps is ready to tackle and it’s a welcomed idea,” he said.

President Tinubu had, through his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, announced that VIPs seeking official protection must now obtain “well-armed personnel” from the NSCDC.

The NSCDC boss further said the meeting was also aimed at discussing strategies and modalities to be adopted in handling VIP protection.

He said that the corps will also engage in strategic discussions with stakeholders at various levels to see how best to discharge the new duty assigned to it.

He, however, stated that personnel of the NSCDC had been actively involved in the protection of VIPs, adding that the assignment wasn’t new to the corps.

“We have been part of it alongside other agencies, and it is important to note that we get trained by the military, especially the training of our special forces,” Audi said.

The CG also said that the ongoing recruitment exercise into the corps by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB) will further boost the manpower of the NSCDC.

Audi charged all state Commandants and heads of formations to live up to expectations in the discharge of their duties, adding that anyone who does not take his job seriously will be sanctioned.

“We will strengthen the monitoring mechanism on performance of heads of formations nationwide with a view to checking what they do and assessing them,” he stated.

He appreciated the efforts, professionalism, resilience and determination of personnel so far in projecting the service.

The Nigerian Army and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have reaffirmed their joint commitment to combating corruption and other financial crimes in Edo State,

EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said this in a statement on Tuesday, in Abuja.

Oyewale said that the new Commander of 4 Brigade, Nigerian Army, Brig-Gen A. O. Balogun, pledged the Army’s support for the EFCC during a courtesy visit to the Benin Zonal Directorate of the Commission, on Monday.

He quoted Balogun as saying that the EFCC required the backing of all Nigerians to effectively deliver on its mandate as the country’s foremost anti-corruption agency.

“The EFCC needs the support of every Nigerian, given its role as the foremost anti-corruption agency in Nigeria.”

According to Oyewale, Balogun noted that cooperation from key stakeholders was critical to disrupting financial crimes, particularly through monitoring illicit fund movements.

“If we can detect the flow of funds, we can nip such crimes in the bud,” the brigade commander is quoted as saying.

Oyewale said that the army chief also highlighted the long-standing relationship between the military and the anti-graft agency, covering personnel training, the fight against illegal oil bunkering and other joint operations.

“One of the reasons for our visit is to familiarise ourselves with the leadership of the Commission so that we can build on the existing relationships between the two institutions.

“It is not about competition but about collaboration. It doesn’t matter who kills the snake as much as the snake is killed,” Balogun is quoted as saying, assuring that the military was ready to provide support to the Commission whenever required.

Oyewale said that the Acting Zonal Director of the EFCC in Benin, Deputy Commander of the Commission, Sa’ad Hanafi Sa’ad, appreciated the visit, describing synergy between security agencies as essential in tackling crime.

“Synergy and collaboration are crucial as no single agency or institution can effectively eliminate crimes and criminality in the society,” he quotes Sa’ad as saying.

According to him, Sa’ad described the Nigerian Army as a critical stakeholder in the anti-corruption fight.

“We build synergy and collaborate with relevant stakeholders, and the Nigeria Army is a critical stakeholder.

“Our interest and your interest are the same, which is to have a better Nigeria, and so we are willing to collaborate with you,” Sa’ad is quoted as saying.

The United Nations’ Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Chaloka Beyani says conflicts are increasingly targeting civilians and heightening the risk of atrocity crimes globally.

Beyani gave the warning ahead of the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime on December 9.

The UN official also warned that the world is witnessing an alarming erosion of respect for international law amidst the rise in global atrocity.

The Office on the Prevention of Genocide and the Responsibility to Protect functions as an early warning system within the UN.

It alerts the Secretary-General, the Security Council and the wider UN system, in that order, when the risk of atrocity crimes, including genocide, is detected.

The Office draws on the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and legal opinions on genocide-related court cases.

The Office also monitors and analyses 14 factors, ranging from armed conflict involving ethnic or religious groups, to hate speech, and the collapse of the rule of law, among others.

Genocide is coined from the Greek prefix genos (meaning, people, race or tribe) and Latin suffix cide (meaning, killing).

According to international law, genocide means any of the acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.

These include killing members of a group or causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of a group.

It also includes deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.

The other is imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group or forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

When these risks show a violent pattern, Beyani issues advisories and coordinates responses with UN officials, maintaining close links with regional organisations like the AU, the EU and other international mechanisms.

“Once our Office sounds the alarm, it signals that the threshold is about to be crossed,” he said.

“Our role is not to determine genocide but to prevent it,”

The adviser noted that indigenous communities, often targeted in disputes over land and natural resources, are among the groups most in need of protection.

“Extraction industries and deliberate actions against them put them at enormous risk,” he said.

“Their identity and way of life make them particularly vulnerable, Beyani emphasised, stressing that his Office defers to international courts to determine whether the crime has been committed.

The Special Adviser also underscored the important role of courts and justice in the protection of vulnerable people.

“The one thing that you want to do in the context of dealing with atrocities is to make aware those who are participating in conflicts that they’re being watched and monitored,” Beyani said.

“Prevention includes accountability,” the Special Adviser said.

Among emerging threats which Beyani’s Office monitors are misinformation and hate speech.

His Office works with technology companies like Meta and Google to address online incitement and with religious and community leaders to counter hate narratives at the local level.

In spite of the gravity of his mandate, the Special Adviser remains focused on diplomacy and prevention over public condemnation.

“This Office was designed to engage quietly, to advise the Secretary-General and the Security Council, and to make public statements when necessary,” he explained.

“States see it as threatening in some respects.”

The Special Adviser emphasised that prevention requires memory as much as action.

“Commemoration of past genocides reminds us of the UN’s founding promise of ‘never again,’ and the basis upon which the Genocide Convention stands” he said.

He noted the preparations for the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime on December 9.

“But remembrance alone is not enough. We must strengthen our tools, build trust, and act early,” he stressed.

Dr. Zainab Muhammad-Idris, National President of the Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria (MWAN), has announced the launch of a nationwide health-sector initiative aimed at strengthening the response of health workers to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Nigeria.

Muhammad- Idris, disclosed this in a statement issued to newsmen on Tuesday in Kaduna.

She said the initiative, supported by the French Embassy in Nigeria, was being implemented as part of the global 16 Days of Activism Against GBV, with the theme “Unite! Invest to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls.”

Muhammad-Idris said the campaign focuses on enhancing the knowledge, capacity and responsiveness of health workers to identify, manage and support survivors of GBV across the country.

She described GBV as a major public health emergency in Nigeria, noting that women and girls are disproportionately affected.

According to her, in spite of the existence of national legal and policy frameworks such as the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP, 2015) and the National Guidelines for Health Sector Response to GBV (Federal Ministry of Health, 2019), many health facilities continue to face challenges

These include inadequate knowledge, weak referral systems and insufficient survivor-centred care.

To bridge these gaps, MWAN was conducting a national assessment of GBV knowledge and management practices among Doctors, Nurses, Midwives and allied health professionals in selected health facilities across the six geopolitical zones.

She explained that the findings would be used to strengthen policies, design targeted training programmes and improve referral pathways and survivor-centred services within the health sector.

The MWAN president said the project aligns with the 2025 global theme, “Unite! Invest to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls,” and expands the association’s ongoing advocacy for safer communities, stronger institutions and improved national accountability for GBV response.

She outlined the key messages of the campaign, stressing that health workers are vital to ending GBV and that informed action saves lives.

She added that every survivor deserves dignity, confidentiality and professional care, and that investing in knowledge is investing in prevention.

Muhammad-Idris called on all health workers across Nigeria to remain vigilant, informed and compassionate in their daily practice.

“As frontline responders, our actions can break cycles of silence, prevent further harm and restore dignity to survivors. Together, we can build a safer, more just Nigeria where women and girls live free from violence,” she said.

Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara on Monday held a closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja, amid intensifying political drama in the state.

Our correspondent sighted the governor around 5:01 p.m., walking toward the President’s office in a deep-blue long-sleeve shirt, black trousers, and a black flat cap. Minutes earlier, Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru had also been ushered in for a separate engagement.

Although details of the two meetings remain undisclosed, the timing has fueled fresh speculation about the next major political shifts in Rivers State and beyond.

Fubara’s visit comes as talk grows louder that he may be preparing to dump the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC). The speculation intensified on Friday, December 5, after 17 lawmakers loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and led by Speaker Martin Amaewhule defected from the PDP to the APC, ostensibly at the behest of the minister of the FCT, whose stranglehold on the lawmakers is widely known. Most political analysts and observers believe it is just a matter of time before the remaining 10 lawmakers join the colleagues in the APC.

With only three lawmakers still seen as loyal to Fubara and who have not resumed sitting since the lifting of the six-month emergency rule on September 18 — analysts say the governor may be weighing several political options. These include forging a new alliance with the Presidency, consolidating his base within the PDP, or making a bold move to the APC to survive deepening hostilities at home.

Sources close to both camps suggest that if Fubara senses an imminent impeachment plot, crossing over to the ruling party could offer him stronger political cover. Others, however, believe he may be seeking Tinubu’s backing to neutralize the Wike-aligned lawmakers while retaining his position within the PDP.

Friday’s mass defection has also raised questions about whether the crisis in Rivers could trigger another round of federal intervention after the March 18 emergency rule that temporarily removed Fubara from office before his reinstatement.

For now, all eyes remain on the Tinubu–Fubara meeting, whose outcome could determine the next major political moves in Rivers State’s escalating power struggle.