The Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF) has donated 50 ballistic helmets, 50 bulletproof vests and 100 raincoats to the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Beecroft to boost the morale and operational readiness of security agencies in the state.
Executive Secretary of LSSTF, Dr Ayodele Ogunsan, said the donation, made at Apapa, was part of a routine exercise to inspect security agencies, encourage commanders and identify areas requiring intervention. He said the Fund was established as an interventionist agency to fill operational gaps that security agencies may be unable to address on their own.
Speaking on preparations for the forthcoming general election, Ogunsan said the Fund was working to ensure a hitch-free exercise by equipping personnel with the resources needed to secure lives and property, and that the state government had directed it to expand resources and deploy assets ahead of the polls.
Ogunsan also spoke on efforts to curb vandalism on bridges, citing the recent discovery of damage on the Alakija/Festac Link Bridge, uncovered during a clean-up exercise targeting scavengers and homeless persons occupying the bridge. He said affected persons had been relocated, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu visited the site after the matter was escalated to him, and security operatives have since been permanently stationed there. Ogunsan added that warnings had been issued to those found responsible and that patrol vehicles and equipment had been deployed to strengthen surveillance.
Responding, Commander of NNS Beecroft, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu, said the donation would support the Navy’s constitutional role in Military Aid to Civil Authority and Military Aid to Civil Power operations. He thanked Governor Sanwo-Olu and the LSSTF, saying the equipment would help the Navy, under Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, secure Lagos waterways and land areas.