Christmas: How secure are you? A lot of people vehemently disagree with my rather seemingly controversial statement: Stop complaining about the government’s failure in the provision of security, because to some reasonable extent, your lack of security at times is nobody’s fault but yours! Now, before you categorise me as a government apologist, permit me to attempt to make my case by citing just a few examples I see every day in my practice, as a security consultant, all of which I believe clearly prove that statement. First, let us look at security within our innermost circles, and to start, I’ll like us to answer very honestly the following five questions: *.Do you have any domestic or contract staff that has full or limited access to your kids and / or the innermost sections of your home or office? *.Does this staff (if domestic) reside with you permanently (with or without “off days” privileges) *.Is this staff related to you or someone you know? *.Do you have an accurately verified physical address of the permanent residence for this staff? *.Do you have a certified and satisfactory guarantor for this staff? If you answered YES to questions 1 and 2 and NO to questions 3, 4 and 5 like over 92 per cent of previous respondents in this year alone, then your security risk level is EXTREMELY HIGH, and this is security that the government has very little or no influence over. Here’s an easier way to explain your answers: “You pay monthly wages to a TOTAL STRANGER that you have no means of verifying his or her true identity, no confirmed follow-up address or reliable guarantor for, to live in your house or work in your office and have unrestricted or limited access to your children and most valued possessions”. A few weeks ago, a video clip showing a nanny brutally assaulting a little girl left in her care by her parents, went viral. As most people watched in horror at the level of brutality this so-called “nanny” inflicted on the poor helpless child, the overwhelming comments from most people were centred on pity for the little girl and of their own possible reactions as parents if such happened to them. I wonder though, how many people asked themselves deeper questions like the 5 above, to verify their security level and exactly how much they truly know of the people who presently reside under their roofs. Barely two years ago, the abduction of kids by their so-called nannies, in exchange for hefty ransoms paid by their parents, was rampant, especially in Lagos State. Investigations I was personally involved in, especially the sharing of pictures of some of the so-called “nannies” that were behind these horrible acts, showed that at least one of those girls was a serial “kidnapper nanny” who was responsible for at least three of those kidnappings back in 2012. The huge socio-economic changes in the lifestyle of today’s working class parents, from their counterparts of 25-30 years ago, have created their huge dependency on domestic staff, one clear example being the huge number of driver and nanny teams that handle morning and afternoon school runs for children nowadays. It’s very easy to complain about the government’s failure in provision of security to its citizens, but we owe it to ourselves, especially at a time like this, as citizens as well to ensure that we develop and practise a good sense of personal security consciousness. Trusting the people who work closely with us should NEVER be based on how many years they’ve worked with us for, because indeed those number of years could all be part of a more sinister plan. Going the extra mile to get accurately verified information about where such staff live, their previous employment history and of course any relatives or well-rooted people who can stand as guarantors for them should never be taken for granted, especially in a society where there are no accurate and multi-level verified identity records for people. Another very glaring way in which people take their personal security for granted is on social media platforms, which a lot of people have absolutely no idea of how far a reach those platforms truly have. I literally cringe in a mixture of shock and fear when I see the number of BBM, FB and Instagram updates and tweets that people do daily giving off so much information about their personal lives without realising how so very vulnerable they are making themselves. A classic example: The club you’re going to be “turning up” at with your crew, and how much money you’re planning on spending there, and where you’ll be coming from before getting there and where you’ll be heading for thereafter is YOUR business and not the business of everyone in the social media world! In social media lingo, that’s TMI to put out there, yet that’s exactly what happens almost on a daily basis....
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 23:04:27 +0000
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