The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, says the military will continue to operate without reservations in ensuring the safety and security of citizens.
Lagbaja said this at a roundtable in Abuja organised by the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), in collaboration with Development Specs Academy.
The event is themed, “Asymmetrical National Security Challenges, the Army and National Development”.
“The Nigerian Army in collaboration with its sister services and other security agencies will continue to operate without any reservation in ensuring the safety and security of the country for the development of all Nigerians.
“I am optimistic that this interaction will deliver practical solutions that can be easily implemented.
“I assure you of the army headquarters’ engagement to a timely resolution of all insecurity issues in a manner that is favourable to the country and its citizens,” Lagbaja said.
He, however, appealed to Nigerians to support the army with the needed information on suspicious persons in their communities.
“I appeal to all Nigerians to continue supporting the Nigerian army and other security agencies in their quest to bring rapid peace, which is necessary for sustainable development.
“Nigerians should continue to support the army; it is the people’s army. We are working to bring about the peace and security that Nigerians yearn so much for.
“I appeal to Nigerians to support the army with information and any other form of support that will grant flexibility to the troops, to be effective in combating the enemies of the state.
“Security is a whole of society’s responsibility and all stakeholders must understand each other and build trust and relationships among themselves,” he said.
He added that the army would continue to work in line with the constitutional provisions to combat all enemies of the state and bring about peace and stability in the country.
Also speaking, Director-General of NARC, retired Maj.-Gen. Garba Wahab, said the military owed Nigerians the responsibility to combat insurgency.
“We owe ourselves the responsibility to tackle our security challenges. We must find a way of ensuring that these issues are tackled. This forum is not about fault finding but finding solutions that will improve performance by the Nigerian Army,” Wahab said.
Similarly, Executive Director, Development Specs Academy, Prof. Okey Ikechukwu, decried the situation where soldiers and the military no longer get intelligence from communities in the fight against insecurity.
“Soldiers and the military have been doing a lot. But that which they are doing is misunderstood. Most communities no longer give them intelligence. So, you find the people whose job depends on the information they get from communities not helping them.
“These men are here to secure us, so we need to give them the needed information. This is our country. We need to fix it,” he said.
In his presentation, the President, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Dr Ike Neliaku, said that the media ought to carry out reporting and discussions on issues of insecurity with responsibility.
“When we don’t take responsibility for whatever we are doing as we report our nation, we leave our nation vulnerable to the risk of assessment and perception by other nations and when that happens, our reputation will be in deficit,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the roundtable had as strategic partnership with the Voice of Nigeria (VON), NAN and NIPR. (NAN)