Tinubu says security in Nigeria is key to stability in the Sahel and promises continued action

President Bola Tinubu on Thursday gave a more instructive reason why his government is taking the security issue seriously, explaining that a secure Nigeria means a secure Sahel region, and brings incalculable benefits to the country’s neighbors.

Flaunting his security record for the umpteenth time, Tinubu said fixing Nigeria would also help the country’s neighbors facing similar challenges and difficulties.

He was speaking in Abuja at the first annual international lecture of the News Agency of Nigeria. The theme of the lecture was: “Insecurity in the Sahel (2008-2024): Dissecting Nigeria’s Challenges – Origins, Consequences and Options.”

The President, who was represented by the National Security Advisor (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, expressed outrage over the multi-dimensional security threats facing the country.

But Tinubu declared to terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements making life unbearable for the citizens that enough was enough.

He said the country’s security forces had destroyed more than 300 terrorist commanders in the past year.

Former Military Head of State and Chairman of the occasion, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, said Nigeria’s security challenges cannot be separated from its regional heritage, stressing that the Sahel has become a huge killing field.

In his goodwill message, the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, traced the regional instability and unrest to both local and foreign factors.

At the same time, Minister of Information and National Guidance, Mohammed Idris, reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to tackling insecurity in the country through better investments in equipment, manpower and intelligence gathering.

Tinubu stated that Nigeria had gone through hell for fifteen years at the hands of anti-social elements who continued to interfere in the livelihood of the citizens.

He said of the criminal elements: “They have continued to interfere with where we live our lives, with our commerce, with our education, with our healthcare system, with our transportation and so on.

“And we just sit and stand and let them. Enough is enough. It has to stop. It will stop. No fewer than 300 terrorist commanders were killed last year. This is just a very conservative statistic.”

The president said his administration has also introduced policies and programs over the past year to improve security. He unveiled six key security objectives developed by his government to curb insecurity.

These include strengthening institutions and promoting accountability to address the root causes of insecurity, as well as investing in job creation, infrastructure development and social services to reduce poverty and inequality.

According to him, “we have developed both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies to eliminate the threats from Boko Haram cowards, banditry, kidnapping for ransom and violent extremists.

“A secure Nigeria is a secure Sahel region because of our numbers, because of our size, because of our strategic position and where we are located. We are improving Nigeria and that, as you can see, will translate into the other parts of our neighboring countries, which are indeed facing challenges and difficulties.

“This lecture, organized by the News Agency of Nigeria, is therefore a worthy contribution to the ongoing debate on what is known about the country’s security architecture and what forecasts we should make in the future.”

On his part, Abubakar said Nigeria’s security challenges cannot be separated from its regional legacy in the Sahel, a vast landmass that includes the troubled countries of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali and Cameroon.

He stated that public debate on the debilitating challenges of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping for ransom, malice and violence, among others, would go a long way in providing solutions aimed at boosting the country’s security architecture.

Abubakar stated: “As many as 4,660 people were killed in this region in 2020, while another 2,600 civilians lost their lives in banditry attacks in 2021.

“Today, this region is still a killing field, despite the efforts of successive governments there. But who are the non-state actors at the heart of this ring of violence?

“What impact does this have on Nigeria? How do we as a nation deal with this presence and this obvious danger? What forecast can we make in the future?”

Musa said the Sahel region has become synonymous with instability, violence and insecurity. He asserted that from the rise of insurgent groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP to the spread of violent extremism, human trafficking and illegal arms proliferation, the region had witnessed unprecedented unrest.

Stating that insecurity has not emerged in a vacuum, the CDS said its roots can be traced to a combination of local and global factors, including poor governance, economic marginalization, climate change, ethnic tensions and the spillover effects of conflict in North -Africa and North Africa. the wider Middle East.

Idris said the NAN lecture was an invaluable opportunity to delve deeply into the root causes of the violence that had ravaged the Sahel region, examine its impact on Nigeria’s territorial integrity and explore the options available are for policy strategists based on the Nigerian security architecture.

The minister acknowledged that the country’s porous borders with some countries in the Sahel, which had become a vortex of instability, violence, terrorism, organized crime, drug trafficking, arms smuggling and violent extremism, had a spillover effect on Nigeria.

Idris stated: “Nigeria shares a long and porous border with several Sahelian countries embroiled in conflict, making us vulnerable to the spillover effects of the conflict. This not only threatens our security, but also challenges our ability to maintain effective control over our borders.

“Several scholars and experts have previously attributed these challenges to socio-economic marginalization, weak governance structures, environmental degradation and climate change, transnational organized crime and illicit arms trafficking, but the spillover effect of these conflicts is taking its toll on our society. economy, internal security and the socio-economic well-being of our people.”

He said the federal government was committed to addressing the underlying problems both domestically and in collaboration with international partners.

The minister emphasized that violence in the Sahel is not an isolated problem and said no country can tackle it alone.

He said Nigeria has stepped up engagement with its neighbors and other regional and international partners, strengthened joint military operations such as the Multinational Joint Task Force, and also supported initiatives aimed at stabilizing the Sahel.

Idris added: “On the home front, security has remained a top priority in President Tinubu’s renewed hope agenda, and through investments in equipment, manpower, acquisition of more combat platforms and intelligence gathering, we are winning the war against insecurity.”

He said the challenges require cooperation among government agencies, international partners and security experts to protect Nigeria’s territorial integrity and contribute to lasting peace and stability in the Sahel region.

Guest speaker on the occasion, Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, stated that although Boko Haram had been demoted and in retreat, the group posed a significant threat as it still maintained financing and supply networks, including links with other extremist groups.

Chambas, chairman of the African Union High Level Panel on Sudan, urged the Nigerian government to cut off the group’s financing and supply network, including the source of supply for the motorcycles used by insurgents to launch attacks on communities and armed forces.

Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar, said environmental, political and security challenges are affecting prosperity and peace in the Sahel region.

The Sultan, who was represented by the Emir of Gumi, Justice Lawal Hassan (rtd), stated that the vast Sahel region was blessed with abundant human resources, offering enormous potential for rapid economic growth.

He said: “With its abundant mineral resources such as lithium, cobalt and uranium, among many others, the Sahel could be described as the richest part of the world.

“The country is expected to be populated by 1.5 billion people by 2050 and will have one of the largest and youngest populations in the world. Although it has abundant human and natural resources that offer enormous potential for rapid economic growth.

“There are deep-rooted challenges – environmental, political and security – that affect the prosperity and peace of the Sahel.”

The Sultan called on the United Nations to address some of the challenges by coming up with a unique support plan targeting ten countries to scale up efforts to accelerate prosperity and lasting peace in the region.

According to him, the ten countries are Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Gambia, Haiti, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal.

Chuks Okocha, Olawale Ajimotokan and Linus Aleke

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