The way we criticize President Buhari on the dire security situation in the country would seem to suggest that we do not have a part to play in keeping our country safe. This was exactly how we treated former President Goodluck Johnathan until he ran out of luck in 2015. Now Dino Melaye and his likes are full of regrets for using former President Johnathan to advance their political career and being checkmated thereafter. If he was still in the Senate would he have apologized to former President Johnathan? As of then, didn't Dino Melaye and his cohorts know that national security is a collective responsibility? That it does not matter which party is in power or who the president is? The lesson to draw from Dino Melaye's subterfuge apology, which is an attempt to sneak into national limelight, is that playing the blame game would not solve our security problems. Therefore, it behooves on all of us to close ranks and work together to defeat our common enemy.
In my opinion, deriding the government for fluttering on national security challenges won't produce the desired result. And asking President Buhari to sack the Service Chiefs would not also bring an end to the problem either. Have we forgotten so soon that former President Johnathan applied that prescription, but it didn't cure our security malady? Rather, it turned the ailment into a full blown cancer. So, what is the point of asking the incumbent president to use the same failed prescription? Is that the only potent solution for asymmetrical warfare, banditry and kidnapping? Even our so-called security experts/consultants seem to be obsessed with the idea of sacking the Service Chiefs. I doubt if that is the kind of prognosis for action that makes them security experts.
For the fact that President Buhari, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is a retired Army General, we should be consoled that he knows what is best for the country at the moment, in that regard. I doubt, if those who have issues with his WASC certificate also have issues with his distinguished military career. Yes, "distinguished" military career. Do you have a problem with that? If our senators could use the adjective indiscriminately, those who fought and are still fighting to defend the country deserve it even more. What do you think?
As it stands, we have allowed all forms of insecurity to fester in the country, especially the Boko Haram insurgency. Based on the experiences of Sir Lanka, Indonesia and Malaysia we have a protracted warfare in our hands if we don't think outside the box. However, the only difference is that the Boko Haram insurgents are not fighting for political space and they also have not made any coherent demand on the Nigerian state. This probably explains why successive governments treated them like "prodigal children". And that is exactly how the current government treats them. This was the same way we treated the Niger Delta militants who are now on French leave and hoping to resume tormenting the country on a future date. But it would seem like that "the prodigal children" approach ( grant them amnesty, debrief them, empower them and reintegrate them into the society) is not working for bandits and Boko Haram insurgents because their ranks have been infiltrated by foreign fighters who are bent on destabilizing the country.
In the light of the above, it is time to change strategy and engage them continuously without allowing them time to breathe on all fronts. The fight against banditry and insurgency has become a merry-go-round because each time our military successfully degrades them, we back off and allow them time to recoup and restrategize. That way they are able to attack soft targets like taking our school children hostages and demand for ransom.
What the Kankara adduction of the 344 school children made obvious, which is reminiscent of the Chibok and Dapchi experience, is the vulnerability of our border communities. It is that same vulnerability that kidnappers and terrorist herdsmen are exploiting in the North Central, Southeast, Southwest and South South. If we must significantly curtail the security challenges these groups have foisted on us we need to establish a National Guards security structure that would permanently police those far flung border communities and illegal entry routes into the country.
If we may recall, we didn't face this kind of security challenges when the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) was established in 2003. Alternatively, if we don't want to establish a National Guards security structure, we could expand the manpower, scope and functions of the NSCDC to cover border communities and illegal entry routes into the country. Other functions include making the forest in all part of the country inhabitable for all manners of criminals by keeping an eye on them perpetually. They should be no safe heaven like Sambisa forest for criminal elements in the country. Protecting farmers and herdsmen from bandits and other intruders should be part of their responsibility.
In addition, intelligence gathering using technology and sharing with other security agencies should be part of their function. The enabling law should ensure that either the National Guards or the new improved NSCDC is not used to perform any other functions like election duty, carrying handbags for Oga's wife or escorting VIPs around. They should stay focused on their core mandate at all times. This prescription might just be the way to end the cat and mouse game we are currently playing with Kidnappers, bandits, terrorist herdsmen and Boko Haram insurgents across the country.
*Felix Akpan PhD*
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