Fresh tonic has been introduced into the nation’s security framework, with the recent retirement of all the service chiefs and the appointment of new personnel.
Their replacements were announced as Maj. Gen. Christopher Musa as the Chief of Defence Staff; Maj. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja as the Chief of Army Staff; Rear Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla as the new Chief of Naval Staff; and Air Vice Marshal Abubakar as the Chief of Air Staff. Mr.Kayode Egbetokun takes over as Inspector-General of Police.
President Tinubu also appointed a new National Security Adviser in the person of Mr.Nuhu Ribadu.
As the new security chiefs come into office, careful note must be taken of the peculiar challenges facing the nation in the portfolios assigned to them individually, as well as jointly.
Equal note must be taken of some key pointers that properly addressed, should lead up to improvements or containment in the levels of peace, security, resource leakages, enterprise enablement, reputational damage and patriotism, going forward.
The security challenges facing Nigeria were very clearly defined by erstwhile Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor in a statement in April.
Irabor says these challenges include terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal clashes, oil theft and piracy, amongst others.
The effectiveness of the nation’s security apparatus is further dogged by poor cooperation and coordination, or the lack of it altogether, among security agencies.
This has been highlighted as a major cause of poor performance and costly lapses in Nigeria’s security architecture over time.
Addressing this lapse, President Tinubu says security agencies must work together.
Speaking after a tour of the new office of the National Security Adviser and facilities at the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), in Abuja on Monday, Tinubu said information sharing must be a priority in the country’s intelligence community.
“Counter terrorism that is not backed by knowledge and intelligence is not going to be of any service to any nation. We are going to work on that together.
“The effort of the entire armed forces of this country must be put together in a way that there will be one single focus on securing the country.You can’t have disharmony in an orchestra. We must focus on one tunnel; coordinate, share information, share intelligence and work harder,” he said.
As the new security chiefs assume office, one low hanging fruit which will yield quick and huge revenue benefits and reputational mileage, is the blockage of crude theft from the oil rich Niger-Delta.
Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, reportedly said in August last year, that Nigeria loses $1.9 billion monthly to crude oil theft.
Kyari’s claim was further reinforced by Timipre Sylva, former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, who reportedly said Nigeria loses 400,000 barrels of crude daily, to thieves.
The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) further said in April, that Nigeria lost 619.7 million barrels of crude oil, valued at N16.25 trillion ($46.16 billion) to theft between 2009 and 2020.
Ex-Niger-Delta militant, Asari Dokubo, recently purported that a military cabal was responsible for much of the crude theft, while the military quickly countered with refutals and a challenge that Dokubo should name names if his claims had any substance.
Mr.Tonye Cole, former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State in the 2023 election, however brought better clarity and perspective to the fray.
Cole said those responsible for oil theft in the Niger Delta are not hidden and that a first line pointer to identifying them would be by flamboyant lifestyles on the back of unexplained income.
Cole, a former executive director of Sahara Energies, a player in Nigeria’s petroleum sector, spoke on a Channels Television programme, Sunday Politics.
He said that Dokubo’s allegation of oil theft against the military is a big issue that must be addressed.
He added that although the military might have been angered by Dokubo’s claim, they would not deny that there are some bad eggs that aid and abet illegal bunkering.
He further observed that if Nigeria does not address the issue of illegal bunkering, a state of emergency in the oil and gas sector might be the only solution.
Nigeria’s security apparatus, starting from the National Security Adviser, through to the service chiefs, must confer, cooperate, share intelligence and resolve to solve this nagging problem.
A solution will bring about huge and immediate reliefs by way revenue mark ups to the nation, to the tune of billions of dollars over a short period.
Regarding the fight against insurgency mainly in the north of the country, which has gone unabted for over ten years, there is a clear need for a change of strategy.
In this wise, the Armed Forces of Nigeria in the last two dispensations has stated that the application of sheer brute force was not yielding the desired result.
Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa (ISWAP) insurgents are still, killing, maiming, kidnapping, displacing and extracting ransome and other rents by strongarm, from innocent law abiding Nigerians.
The erstwhile Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, had said repeatedly and recently in April, that there was a need to change strategy. Irabor went as far as to say that the change of strategy was already being put into effect.
He described the new stratagem as an “All of Society Approach”.
He said: “National security in the country is a complex issue that requires a multifaceted approach from all sectors of the society.
“To curtail this security situation, an all-of-society approach is required”.
Irabor said the approach involves the participation of the government, security agencies, civil organisations, religious leaders, traditional leaders, the press and the general public.
According to him, the plan recognises the integrated roles of the armed forces with the larger society as critical, by adopting a whole of government and whole-of-society approach.
The “All of Society Approach,” is said to entail winning the confidence of communities disturbed by insurgents, through effective engagement and communication, coordinated welfare support, by way of the provision of immediate relief support and enablement for self sustenance in the long term.
It also entails seeing to the re-establishment and running of healthcare centres, schools and the learning and funding of trades and crafts.
It is said to further entail coopting the locals into security activities of their communities for the protection of their settlements.
Religious bodies, corporate organisations and others are expected to work together with security agencies and government in the effort.
Irabor said the combination of kinetic and non-kinetic efforts had led to a lot of success in the ongoing operations conducted by the armed forces across the country.
He added that “one of the benefits of non-kinetic operations is that they can be used to achieve strategic objectives without causing unnecessary damage or loss of life which is especially important in conflicts where civilian casualties must be minimised”.
These new approaches need to be appraised and if need be adjusted, in the effort against insurgency, going forward.
