Nigeria President Bola Tinubu has asked security and intelligence agencies in the country to share information and intelligence among themselves, saying hoarding such resources can be counterproductive in the fight against terrorism.
Tinubu spoke on Monday, in Abuja after a tour of the new Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and facilities at the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC).
The president declared, “You can’t have disharmony in an orchestra. We must focus on one tunnel; coordinate, share information, share intelligence and work harder.
“You cannot hoard information. You cannot hoard intelligence. I am glad that Nigeria is on the path to succeed. We will, I assure you. We will make it a priority and that is why I am here this morning.”
While noting the efforts demonstrated in countering terrorism and the state-of-the-art facilities at the two facilities, Tinubu highlighted the importance of backing such efforts with knowledge.
He said his administration had recognized that to achieve economic revival, prosperity, and development, security should be of optimum priority.
According to him, “It is a great joy to see that we are getting proactive resources to prepare ourselves. Terrorism is not unique to Nigeria alone. It is across the world and we have to fight it. We have to eliminate it completely. If we, as Nigerians, are looking for economic revival, prosperity and development, then we have to give priority to security.
“What I have seen here is a demonstration of intelligence efforts to counterterrorism. This must be backed by knowledge. Counterterrorism 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.”
Tinubu described the tour of facilities at the new ONSA building as very important, and expressed his willingness to do whatever was necessary to support the nation’s security architecture.
Earlier, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd), thanked the president for making the visit his first engagement outside the State House.
“It reinforces his commitment, dedication and inflexible rigidity to ensuring that the security misfortunes of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and, by extension, the sub-regions, are overcome within the shortest time possible,” he said.
Monguno pledged the total commitment and dedication of ONSA to ensuring that Tinubu realized the promises he made to the Nigerian people on security.
Deji Elumoye
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