Porous borders aggravating Nigeria’s security challenges – NSA

The National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno (Rtd.), on Tuesday, said porous borders have continued to aggravate the country’s security challenges.

The NSA stated this in Abuja during the eighth session of the Cameroon-Nigeria Transborder Security Committee.

He said members of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram terrorists have continued to exploit the porous border areas to disrupt the livelihoods of innocent citizens in their communities.

Monguno’s comment came a few hours after some bandits invaded the Afaka barracks of the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, killing two senior officers. The bandits were also said to have also kidnapped a senior officer.

“The most dominant transnational security issue remains the threat of terrorism perpetrated by the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram Terrorists (BHTs).

“These terrorist groups continue to exploit the porous border areas to disrupt the livelihoods of innocent citizens in their communities,” he said.

He also stated that another emerging concern was the attempt by secessionist groups in Nigeria to form alliances with secessionist groups in Cameroon in order to destabilise both countries.

Monguno, however, maintained that the collective efforts of stakeholders under the auspices of the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) have significantly degraded terrorists’ activities in the Lake Chad Basin and positive outcomes are being recorded.