Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF) has donated 30 ballistic helmets, 30 bulletproof vests, 30 operational boots and 30 raincoats to the Nigeria Police Maritime Command, and promised a new patrol pickup vehicle within a month.
The donation was made when the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of LSSTF, Dr Ayodele Ogunsan, paid his maiden official visit to the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Maritime Command, AIG Ronke Nurat Okunade, at the Force Headquarters Annex in Lagos.
Ogunsan said the gesture was meant to strengthen an institution that has done well in securing the state’s waterways.
He said the Maritime Command’s mandate covered safeguarding the national maritime domain, securing waterways, combating maritime crime and economic sabotage, and ensuring agencies such as the Nigerian Port Authority, NIWA and NIMASA carried out their duties.
He linked the timing of the intervention to the approaching 2027 general election and the ember months, noting that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has scheduled the presidential and National Assembly polls for January 16, 2027, and governorship and state assembly elections for February 6, 2027.
He said the sensitivity of the period made it necessary to pay closer attention to waterways security.
Ogunsan said the latest support builds on past assistance to Lagos Marine Police, including fuel for gunboats and repairs to marine assets, adding that plans were underway to procure new gunboats for the command.
LSSTF was established by Lagos State law in September 2007 as a public-private partnership to bridge operational and logistical gaps facing security agencies. It says its support has included patrol vehicles, marine crafts, protective equipment and training.
Responding, AIG Okunade thanked LSSTF for the visit and the donated equipment, describing the Fund as a longstanding partner of the police. She said the Command would deploy the items professionally and remain accountable to the public.
On preparedness for the ember months and the coming election period, Okunade said the coastal environment remained safe under the command’s watch and would be further strengthened by the new equipment. She added that local knowledge of the operating terrain was critical to effective maritime policing, and assured that the command would continue working with relevant agencies to keep the waterways secure.