The Chief of Defence Intelligence (CDI), Major General Samuel Adebayo, has called for collaboration between the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in the area of Intelligence sharing.
General Adebayo said when he led a delegation of principal officers on a working visit to the NIS’s headquarters, in Abuja, on Wednesday, that the collaboration has become imperative because of Immigration’s robust Data Command and Control Centre.
The NIS centre, which was recently launched by President Buhari, tagged “Technology Building”, would serve as a platform for synergy between the NIS and relevant agencies, both local and international, to enhance national security.
The centre has the capacity to share, query, analyse and provide intelligence on the bio-data of Nigerians and non Nigerians, holders of passports, either as residents or on transit.
In a statement on Thursday by NIS Spokesperson, James Sunday, General Adebayo appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari for making NIS a leading Immigration service that was evolving world class service delivery, with a record of uploading over 150,000 Stolen and Lost Travel Documents (STLD).
According to him, this called for applause as it makes Nigeria the first African country and the 54th in the world in achieving the feat.
Comptroller General of NIS, Mr Muhammad Babandede, said that security services must endeavour to share Intelligence real time and work together to bring an end to the security challenges facing the country.
He said the security agencies could overcome with the deployment of an integrated Intelligence machinery to decimate the bandits, kidnappers and insurgents in the country.
Babandede also said that all the criminal elements transforming into various organised criminal groups, attacking innocent and defenseless citizens could be dealt with through the joint collaboration.