Chief of Defence Staff General LEO Irabor was key speaker at the First Chronicle Roundtable at Yar’adua Centre, Abuja on Wednesday, February 23. He spoke on Armed Forces and the fight against insecurity in Nigeria. 7 key things he said:
1] Armed Forces are currently engaged in fighting BHT/ISWAP, armed bandits, kidnappers, secessionist groups in the SE and SW, Farmers/Herders clashes, intercommunal violence, Illegal Oil Bunkerers, Pirates/Gunmen, Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, Arms Smugglers, incursion by Ambazonian rebels.
2] Armed Forces have many special operations on-going including Operation Hadin Kai, Operation Hadarin Daji, Operation Whirl Punch, Operation Safe Haven, Operation Whirl Stroke, Operation Delta Safe, Operation Awatse, Operation Udoka.
3] Some issues reducing operational effectiveness: Politicisation of insecurity, No common understanding or united front, inadequate local support.
4] Non-Kinetic Operations conducted by Armed Forces include: OPSC, CIMIC Projects, Conflict Resolution through Key Leaders Engagements, Public Awareness Programmes.
5] Major achievements in fight against insurgents/criminals include: Recovery of Space, Recovery of weapons/ammunition, Protection of lives of civilians and infrastructure, Enhancement of Governance and development, Surrender of several BHTs and other elements, Preservation of our democratic values, Increased awareness among the people, Uniting disparate groups/entities of Nigeria.
6] Challenges faced by Armed Forces in fight against insecurity include: Politicization of security issues, Ethnicisation of Security, Resource Constraints, Porous Borders, Weak Judicial procedures for management of terrorist/serious crimes, Over-reliance on imported military hardware, Limited involvement of other stakeholders, Inadequate bilateral and multinational engagements between Nigeria and some of her neighbors including Sahel countries, False narratives in favour of criminal causes.
7] Way Forward: Improved Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Heightened alertness, operational security and clearance operations to dominate various areas, Enhanced synergy and coordination amongst the Services and MDAs, Sustained psychological operations in conjunction with other agencies, Strong and effective Judicial reforms, patriotic media support for military operations, Increase resourcing for Defence and Security, de-politicize Security scenarios across the country, Focused development of Military Industrial Complex.
