Senator Muhammad Adamu Aliero representing Kebbi Central Senatorial District of Kebbi State has described Nigeria to be technically at war and therefore needs emergency measures, urgent national consensus on security, quick military upgrade and massive onslaught against terrorists, bandits and all non-state actors holding the nation to ransom.
He called for a declaration of national emergency on insecurity that prioritizes immediate increase in the military workforce and a more coordinated approach against insecurity and existential threats to national peace, unity and stability, saying time had come to unleash the fresh potentials of the nation’s critical mass especially the youths towards unprecedented economic growth and development under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
He stated this yesterday while speaking to journalists in Abuja against the backdrop of the recent speedy screening and confirmation of the Acting Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant Olufemi Olatunbosun Oluyede by the Senate and House of Representatives respectively. He stated that the speedy joint exercise by the lawmakers represented their consistent commitment to efforts geared towards bringing peace to all segments of the Nigerian society.
According to the three-term senator and member of the Senate Committee on Army, maximum military force by Nigeria’s armed forces would permanently wipe out the new Jihadist Lakurawa group in Kebbi and Sokoto states.
He further declared that Nigeria is technically in a state of war owing to the several non-state actors it is battling on several fronts hence the call for an declaration of a state of emergency on insecurity that would compel immediate upgrade of military workforce and hardware, increased funding and a broader coordinated approach to security concerns under the national security architecture.
“Today, whether we like to hear it or not, Nigeria is technically at war, with terrorists, bandits, insurgents, non-state actors, look at what has been happening in the North East, in North Central, in the North West and the South East, unknown gun men killing people, we are virtually at war. Our gallant forces are not relenting.
“In Kebbi after our troops go after the Lakurawas, they recover cows, goats and valuables stolen from the people, then they run into nearby Niger Republic through the wide porous borders only to come back when our soldiers retreat. That’s the problem.
“The border is very wide, Kebbi alone has almost 200 kilometers border from beginning to the end and all is bordered by two countries, Benin and Niger Republics which impose heavy measures on the terrorists.
“The Nigerien government can maintain their troops but we don’t have enough manpower. The entire workforce in the Nigerian army is not more than 200, 000 in a country of over 200 million whereas Egypt with a population of just 80 million has a more than 1 million-man army.
“The situation calls for urgent mass recruitment. At the start of the civil war, we had about 60, 000 soldiers so we embarked on a very massive recruitment which brought it to more than 500, 000 soldiers that won that 3-year civil war after which we did de-mobilization. It was the massive recruitment of workforce that won the war.
‘’The problem remains that we don’t have enough personnel, even if the military keep troops stationary in crisis-prone areas, they will find it difficult because of their prevailing personnel limitations. So a massive recruitment is the issue.
“Recently, we were at the Army Headquarters on a condolence over Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja’s demise, they maintained that they don’t have enough manpower, and even after they’ve been asked to recruit, they don’t have accommodation for personnel. How do you expect a recruited soldier to go to the war front without housing his family? So it’s difficult to keep them anywhere permanently.
“To be honest, we should declare a period of emergency on insecurity otherwise we won’t be able to fight the war decisively. We must do something to stop this monster anywhere at all cost, and the only way we can do that is through our military might both air power and our ground troops to eliminate them otherwise we won’t have peace in Nigeria’’, the senator said.‘
“We are keenly watching the Lakurawa situation in Kebbi. Senator Yahaya Abdullahi in whose constituency they attacked has already properly brought the matter before the senate. We must not play with them. It would be devastating to have another Northeast in the Northwest, because the Northwest has more population, richer in agricultural land, animal husbandry with rivers for good irrigation, fishing and other things.
“It is important to reveal that the new Jihadist terrorists are different from bandits because bandits have no ideological or doctrine, bandits are just bandits who are out to harass people, steal and kill but these new one has religion at the back of their minds trying to preach purity in Islam, going after cattle rearers for zakat (tithes), if you resist they forcefully take your cows away, they kill anyone they see in uniform, army, immigration, customs, police, etc. But people don’t seem to realize’’, he said.
“Their strategy is simple: they lure the people to believe that they are peaceful, that they just want to teach them their religion and at the same time they are extending themselves, doing massive recruitment, this is how Boko Haram started, they are doing massive recruitment of people, they have slush money like Al Queda, when they buy anything they pay in hard currency, we suspect Al Queda is involved.
“Don’t forget Al Queda caused all the trouble in Iraq, Syria, they masterminded the Arab Spring, look at what’s in Somalia, they are killing people every day, even in Kenya but the Kenyan government came down heavily on them. Ours cannot be different. “It is our primary responsibility as elected representatives of our people to bring these issues to the fore for appropriate executive action. In my case, as former governor of Kebbi State and acclaimed political leader, whatever happens in the state concerns me, any attack anywhere is attack everywhere in Kebbi and I should do whatever I can to stop it.
“We will continue to work assiduously with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to keep the country safe, secure and stable because insecurity does not recognise race, religion, tribe, tongue or party affiliation. Security is everybody’s responsibility’’, he said.
