Service Chiefs Meet Buhari, Pledge to Work Harder

To co-opt Nigerians into gathering intelligence

Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja

Heads of Nigeria’s security outfits thursday met with President Muhammadu Buhari and vowed to work much harder to tackle the endemic security challenges plaguing the country.

The service chiefs also resolved to decentralise the task of intelligence gathering by involving the people in collecting information that could enhance the nation’s security.

The meeting, which lasted for about three-and-half hours, was attended by Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Abubakar Sadique; the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu; the National Security Adviser, Major Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd.) and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Rufai.

Sadique, who briefed State House reporters after the meeting, said they discussed the security situation in the country and resolved to work harder to guarantee the security of Nigerians and to simultaneously defend the country’s territorial integrity.

“The meeting is all about the security of Nigerians and Nigeria. And the message coming out of that meeting is that the Armed Forces of Nigeria and other security forces will continue to work much harder to ensure that every Nigerian is secured and the territorial integrity of Nigeria is not undermined by anybody,” Sadique said.

Asked if the service chiefs would not alter their security strategy in view of the protracted insecurity bedeviling the country, said the strategy had already been changed and the new one was effective.

According to him, the current security strategy is working and hence, the question of changing it does not arise.
According to him, the security chiefs will henceforth co-opt Nigerians into the task of intelligence gathering and its subsequent dissemination to security agencies.

“I think the strategy has already been changed and from what we are seeing, the current strategy is working. What we are going to do is to ensure that all hands are on deck and every Nigerian equally has a role to play by passing relevant intelligence to us.

“So far, the strategy that we have on ground is really working and that is the one we will continue to pursue,” he stated.