The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested 10 secondary school graduates and students in Adamawa State over their alleged involvement in the banned final-year celebration popularly known as “Signed Out.”
The arrests were disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSC Nyako Amidu Baba, who said operatives of the NSCDC Safe School Response Squad acted on credible intelligence linking students from Capital School, Government Day Secondary School (GDSS) Demsawo, Doubelli and Damilu to activities considered a threat to public peace and order.
According to the statement, the suspects allegedly engaged in painting their bodies, tearing school uniforms, fighting on the streets and other acts capable of causing public disturbance.
The command noted that the “Signed Out” celebration has become a growing concern for parents, school authorities and the public, prompting the Adamawa State Ministry of Education to prohibit the practice in 2025.
“The trend, which has increasingly become a source of concern to parents, school authorities and the general public, had earlier attracted the attention of the Adamawa State Government, which, through the State Ministry of Education, issued a directive against the practice last year,” Baba stated.
The NSCDC further alleged that this year’s celebration took a more troubling turn, with reports that some participants disguised themselves in suspicious outfits and allegedly robbed members of the public of mobile phones and other valuables.
Preliminary investigations also revealed that one of the suspects arrested while dressed in a school uniform was not a student, while some of those apprehended were not final-year students but were still in Senior Secondary School One (SS1) and Senior Secondary School Two (SS2).
“In the course of the operation, one of the persons arrested was found wearing a school uniform but was reportedly not a student. The command also discovered that some of those arrested were not final-year students, as initially presumed, but were still in SS1 and SS2,” the statement added.
Following the incident, the State Commandant, CC Nasiru Saleh, directed a comprehensive investigation to identify everyone involved and determine the full circumstances surrounding the incident.
Saleh reaffirmed the command’s commitment to preventing activities capable of disrupting academic programmes, threatening public safety or endangering students and residents.
He also directed the Safe School Response Squad to strengthen collaboration with school authorities and relevant stakeholders to improve preventive measures and maintain a safe learning environment across schools in the state.
The command said it is working closely with the affected schools to verify the identities of all students and other individuals linked to the incident.
The Adamawa State Ministry of Education banned the “Signed Out” celebration in 2025 following increasing concerns over violence, public disorder and other misconduct associated with end-of-school festivities. Authorities have continued to warn schools and students against participating in the practice, citing threats to public safety and student security.