The Secretary to the Government of the Federal, SGF George Akume has called on the Nigerian military to effectively collaborate with the civil society to further the efforts at combating insecurity in the country.
He made the call during the Annual Civil-Military Conference 2024 held at the National Defence College Abuja, Nigeria.
George Akume who was represented by Professor Babatunde Bernard at the event called on the organizers of the conference to encourage grassroots programs that will further the ideologies of societal cooperation with the military for the overall benefit of national security.
‘The people at the grassroots must be reached with similar ideologies because it is ordinary people that are utilized as channels of supplies for those perpetrating insecurity in the country
‘Also the issue of fake news has become such a menace, it is a huge cankerworm, the Internet has been abused and used as agent of destabilization, it is an exaggerated form of prejudice, leading to people acting on inform
ation without thinking, an example was the recent protest in the country’.
The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Omar Touray who was represented by the Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Abdul-Fatau Musa said terrorism, if allowed from the Sahel and other, other areas that import the ideology to thrive within the region, it will become ungovernable.
He revealed that the ECOWAS is on the verge of activating the standby force as part of measures to curb the menace of terrorism and other form of insecurity in the region.
‘It is equally important that the civil society is engaged in the process of securing our region in tackling the complex security challenges, terrorists are also trying to make use of the air space with the use of technology such as drones and this must be cubed. Ecowas is pleased about the Civil-Military Conference conference especially its incorporation and expansion to include West African countries, ECOWAS will gladly work with such platforms for the overall int
erest of the region,’ stated the President of the ECOWAS Commission.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, represented at the conference by Rear Admiral US Ibrahim applauded the conference organisers for bringing together stakeholders to discuss matters of national security to strenghten national security architecture.
He emphasized that collaboration, cooperation and coordination is important to bring about a lasting solution to the issues of insecurity in the country.
‘The Nigerian Armed Forces have always been committed to the citizen’s safety and overall national security and it is open to civil society cooperation and collaboration to enhance the whole of society approach’.
The Commandant of the National Defence College, Rear Admiral Olumiyiwa Olotu emphasized that civil-military cooperation is something the college takes seriously and the military is fortunate to have a commander in Chief who takes issues concerning the military seriously.
This he said enables the military to also f
urther its civil-military cooperation activities. He pointed out that as much as conferences such as the one being held are important, without implementations of the strategies that emanate from them they can be very unuseful no matter how well-researched the presentations are.
The convener of the conference, Adams Otako said the conference aims to clearly define the role of each stakeholder and undertake security engagements in tackling issues of national importance.
‘These engagements have resulted in an improved relationship between the armed forces and the civil society, and improved respect for human rights, as the conference is focused on galvanizing support and cooperation for national security, every stakeholder must prioritize national survival.’
The conference organized by the Civil Society Centre for Leadership and Followership runs from 10th to 12th September 2024 and includes technical sessions that will discuss in-depth matters that concern national security in closed door sessions.
Source:
Voice of Nigeria