One year after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu launched the Presidential Forest Guards Initiative, Nigerians are demanding answers. The abductions of schoolchildren and teachers have sparked urgent questions about where these guards are and what they're actually doing.
Tinubu announced the program on May 15, 2025, following months of kidnappings linked to forest-based criminal gangs. The initiative grew out of a February 2024 meeting between the president and state governors.
States were ordered to hire between 2,000 and 5,000 guards each. The mission was clear: stop bandits, kidnappers and illegal armed groups operating in remote forest and mountain areas.
Recent kidnappings have intensified scrutiny on the program's effectiveness. Over 80 schoolchildren were taken in Borno and Oyo states, while six students vanished in Zamfara.
When 46 students and staff members were abducted in Oyo's Oriire Local Government Area, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu visited the community. He acknowledged that President Tinubu inherited serious, long-standing security problems.
Ribadu announced plans to deploy an additional 1,000 forest guards to address the crisis. His statement signaled concern about the situation's gravity.
On December 27, 2025, the Office of the National Security Adviser graduated over 7,000 newly recruited guards. They were deployed across Borno, Sokoto, Yobe, Adamawa, Niger, Kwara and Kebbi states—the nation's seven most vulnerable regions.
At the graduation ceremony, Ribadu promised swift action. "There will be no delay between graduation and deployment," he said.
According to him, salaries and allowances would start immediately upon deployment. Every certified guard would report directly to their assigned posts.
Ribadu described the guards as more than uniformed personnel. In his words, they're "first responders, community protectors and crucial elements of Nigeria's security framework."
He emphasized their role in gathering intelligence and supporting other agencies. Reclaiming territories from criminals, he noted, depends heavily on these guards' efforts.
Yet citizens want clarity on something troubling: where are the guards who were already deployed before this latest batch? Their visibility and impact remain unclear.
Official sources say the forest guard program operates under the National Security Adviser's direction. It works alongside the Federal Ministry of Environment in a collaborative structure.
Operational coordination involves the Department of State Services and the National Park Service. Both agencies share responsibility for managing daily activities.
Multiple military and security organizations feed into the initiative. These include Defence Headquarters, the Nigerian Army, Navy, Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
Guards receive training and weapons to work alongside established security agencies. That's the plan, anyway, according to official documents.
Advocate.ng sought comment from the Office of the National Security Adviser. Michael Abu, head of the Department of Strategic Communications in the National Counterterrorism Centre, could not be reached.
An email to the DSS requesting information went unanswered at press time. Official silence has only deepened public frustration.
The structural framework exists on paper. But Nigerians want to see results on the ground where it matters most.
