Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Danbazzau has said that the Federal Government is weighing the possibility of establishing a National Guard which will address security threats and emergencies in the country.

He stated this in Abuja on Thursday while playing host to the Adjutant-General of the California National Guard in the United States, Major General David Baldwin who paid him a courtesy visit.

Danbazzau revealed that the Federal Government had several years ago planned to establish a National Guard which did not materialise, stressing that a lot of consultations will be undertaken before a final decision is reached in that regard.

He further stated that the creation of a National Guard would go a long way in filling the vacuum between the operations of the Nigerian Police and the military in tackling emergencies and security challenges in the country.

Earlier in his speech, Major General Baldwin said he and his team were in the country to foster partnership in the area of security as they will be actively involved in the training of Nigerian security agencies like the Nigeria Immigration Service, Fire Service, NSCDC and the Nigeria Prisons which are all under the Ministry of Interior.

He further stated that although the National Guard is very a cost-effective and strategic unit that has helped the United States in tackling emergencies like flood, fire and other national disasters, it was up to the Nigerian government to draw up modalities towards the establishment of the security outfit in the country.