Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has hinted at sacking the country’s service chiefs and reorganising the country’s security apparatus and personnel.
In his new year message to Nigerians, the president said the move will enhance the capacity of the military to wage the war against insurgency.
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For several months there have been calls for the Nigerian leader to sack the country’s service chiefs over increased attacks by bandits and boko haram terrorists.
The call doe the sack of the service chiefs heightened when more than 40 farmers were slaughtered in their farm in Zarbamari in Borno state, the most gruesome in 2020 and in December over 300 schoolboys were abducted in Kankara, Katsina state. The boys were later rescued.
“Re-energizing and reorganizing the security apparatus and personnel of the armed forces and the police with a view to enhance their capacity to engage, push back and dismantle the operations of both internal and external extremist and criminal groups waging war against our communities in some parts of the country,” the Nigerian president said in his new year speech.
“In line with the current security challenges, we are facing as a Nation, I would like to reiterate the promise I made recently when over 300 of our boys abducted from Government Science Secondary School, Kankara were successfully rescued by our security operatives.
“The professionalism shown by our Security Forces and the collaboration from all stakeholders across both State and Federal Governments that led to the successful rescue of the boys is proof that Nigeria has the internal capacity to decisively deal with terror attacks on our citizens.
“However, we recognize that we rapidly have to move to a more proactive and preemptive posture to ensure that these sorts of traumatic incidents do not become a norm.
“Our administration is fully aware of the responsibility we have to protect the lives and property of all Nigerians, and we will not relent in learning and adapting to changing threats to our national security and civic wellbeing,” he said.
By Abel Ejikeme