Delta Activist Urges Security Agencies to Review Recruitment Age as Tinubu Declares National Security Emergency

By Endurance Ikanone

The convener of the Niger Delta Intelligence Network (NDIN), Comrade Chris Anthony, has called on Nigeria’s security agencies to urgently review and increase the age requirements for new recruits, following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s declaration of a nationwide security emergency. Anthony made the call while speaking at a function in Sapele, Delta State.

President Tinubu, on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, announced sweeping measures to strengthen the country’s fight against terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping. His directives include mass recruitment into the Nigerian Police Force, the Nigerian Army, and the Department of State Services (DSS), with the police alone expected to enlist an additional 20,000 personnel. The President also authorised the use of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camps as temporary training centres and ordered the deployment of trained forest guards to flush out criminal elements hiding in forests across the country.

Reacting to the President’s declaration, Comrade Chris Anthony described the move to recruit massively as commendable but insisted that the existing age limits for applicants were no longer realistic given the current security situation. According to him, “The job on ground to flush out terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers is not for children between 18 and 22 for junior officers, or 22 to 30 for senior officers. The age bracket should be expanded to accommodate more mature, experienced, and brave Nigerians.”

Anthony recommended that the junior officer category be adjusted to 18 to 30 years, while senior officer applicants should be allowed from 25 to 39 or 40 years. He argued that a broader age range would attract individuals with greater discipline, emotional maturity, and life experience qualities he said are indispensable in confronting criminal groups who have become more daring and heavily armed.

He stressed that limiting recruitment to very young applicants denies the security services access to a large pool of capable Nigerians who possess the strength, courage, and mental preparedness for frontline operations. “We are dealing with terrorists operating with sophisticated tactics. This demands men and women who fully understand the gravity of the task before them,” he noted.

The activist further urged security agencies to ensure transparency in the recruitment process and prioritise competence over connections or political influence. He also called for improved welfare packages, better equipment, and modern training modules to ensure that newly recruited personnel can work effectively without being overwhelmed.

Anthony added that the success of President Tinubu’s emergency security plan would depend not just on numbers but on the quality and preparedness of the personnel deployed across the country. He appealed to federal and state governments to strengthen local intelligence gathering, improve inter agency cooperation, and involve community leaders in grassroots security strategies.

While commending the President for supporting states with existing security outfits and for urging the National Assembly to reconsider the legal framework for state policing, he maintained that meaningful progress would require reforms in recruitment, training, and deployment.

“We must adjust our systems to reflect the realities of today,” Anthony said. “Nigeria needs a security workforce that is mature, courageous, and mentally prepared for the battle ahead. Increasing the recruitment age is a necessary step if we truly want to win this fight” he concluded.