Terrorism Threat: Let’s Tighten Security In Schools – Dr Aubyn

Dr Festus Aubyn, Regional Coordinator, Research and Capacity Building at the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, has called on schools to tighten their security measures following cautions from the National Security that the country is a target for terrorists.

“As school authorities, they should ensure that there is some form of security measures in schools. Security measures for schools are key, especially as there is a heightened threat of terrorism,” he said.

The Regional Coordinator said the physical presence of enhanced internal security in schools could deter attacks and terrorism influences.

Dr Aubyn said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on terrorism and how students could be influenced into the act and possible attack on schools.

He said schools were fertile grounds for such activities and asked the authorities to build relationships with the police and other security agencies for any eventuality.

Dr Aubyn underscored the need for sensitization programmes on terrorism for teachers, pupils, and students to keep them on the alert.

“Sensistisation programmes for staff and students are very important. They give them tips about what to observe and if there are any suspicious activities, they know where to report,” he added.

Dr Aubyn said parents also had a role to play in ensuring that they monitored activities of their wards, especially in the use of the internet.

“Most of the students are ignorant of terrorism and its related activities and can easily fall prey to them on social media. So, parents and even the students themselves need to be mindful of their activities online,” he said.

Dr Aubyn stressed the need for the country to intensify intelligence gathering at hotspots and sensitize the populace on the act, preventive, and defensive mechanisms.

The National Security Ministry on Tuesday issued an alert indicating that the country had been targeted for a possible terrorist attack following a surge in terrorist activities in the sub-region.

The statement called for heightened vigilance in areas of mass gatherings, especially entertainment and worship places.

“There is good reason to believe that the terrorists operating within the region have Ghana as a target and there is the need to increase security measures and engage the public to be more careful,” the statement said.

Source: GNA