The National Security Adviser (NSA), retired Major General Babagana Mongunu on Monday said many “educated” Nigerians were undermining national security.
Monguno, who said this at a town hall meeting in Kaduna to address the spate of insecurity in the northwest zone, said the current insecurity across the country required a multifaceted approach to address.
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Daily Trust reports that the meeting had in attendance all the governors of the northwestern region, the Chairman of the Northern States Governors Forum, Simon Lalong as well as all the service chiefs, emirs, religious and traditional leaders.
The NSA stressed that government’s efforts to tackle the challenge of insecurity must be complemented by efforts of traditional and religious leaders as well as communities to achieve the desired results.
He said: “What has been going on in the North East and North West is very troubling to all of us and President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to bringing an end to this terrible situation in which we keep killing each other without recourse for the other person’s right to live and to undertake his legitimate undertakings of whatever choice worth he/she wants to undertake.
“I do not want to believe that we are unable to put an end to what is going on in this country, perhaps, we have not had the will to do that as a people, but for the government, I want to reassure you that the government especially with the arrival of the new leadership in the armed forces, is redoubling its effort to secure the lives of people.
“With the new service chiefs, there is a new direction to surmounting these problems, all we require is your understanding and patience but you need to educate your colleagues at whatever level because we have a lot of people, even though they are educated, they are superstitious and have been engaging in a lot of things that are undermining national security,” he said.
He said communities have the greatest responsibility despite the fact that security remains the primary responsibility of government.
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Major General Lucky Irabor, who spoke on behalf of the service chiefs, assured that the armed forces were not resting on its oars as some reorganisation was currently taking place to change the tide in the region.
