Former President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday attended the graduation and passing out ceremony of 1,456 members of the Katsina Community Watch Corps, Batch 1.

The event coincided with the commissioning of 40 new buses for the transportation of students and teachers to schools in the state.

It would be recalled that Katsina State Governor Dikko Umaru Radda, who assumed office on 29 May 2023, initiated the recruitment of 2,400 youths into the Community Watch Corps to address the growing concerns of terrorism and criminal activities in the state.

The governor said the graduates will join forces with traditional security forces to combat banditry and other forms of criminality that have plagued the state.

He also emphasized that the new graduates will focus on bolstering security in frontline local governments and confront terrorists in their hideouts to put an end to their menace across Katsina.

Ahead of the graduation, Radda’s administration released a total of N560 million for the purchase of security equipment for the corps.

The graduation and passing out ceremony was graced by governors and representatives of six Northwest states – Kebbi, Sokoto, Jigawa, Zamfara, Kaduna, Kano – as well as Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State.

Buhari was the chairman of the occasion, while the governors were special guests of honour.