By Emeka Alex Duru
As part of its contribution to stemming the rising trend of insurgency and general insecurity in the country, the House of Representatives has listed measures for President Muhammadu Buhari to battle the menace. The recommendations were made by the Special Committee on National Security, which was constituted following a summit by the House on insecurity, in June.
Part of the recommendations was for the President to give immediate consideration to the use of private defence contractors for targeted security operations, especially to combat insurgency and terrorism. The House also recommended that a special team of 40,000 Police Mobile Unit officers undergo special training to improve their capacity in dealing with issues of insecurity. It also urged the Federal Government to deploy early warning systems nationwide, including installation of CCTV cameras and other surveillance, satellite and electronic equipment along major highways, public places, and major cities and the borders.
The lawmakers equally called for the creation of local security committees in all 774 local government areas to be managed by the Nigerian Police Force as part of its community policing mandate. The committees, they argued, should include traditional rulers, religious institutions, and local opinion leaders.
They further urged the federal government to create a new team under the Nigeria Police Force, NPF, to train and work with the guards of Nigeria’s forests. This unit will collaborate with the current Forest Guards who will remain under the control of states.
These are far-reaching recommendations that reflect the mood in the country and helplessness of Nigerians in the face of the spiraling insecurity. They came at the right time, considering what Nigerians have passed through in the last 12 years that insurgents have been on the prowl in many parts of the country, particularly the North East. A recent United Nations report had for instance, linked insurgency in the North East, with deaths of some 324,000 children under five, mostly from disease and hunger.
It also made frightening prediction of the casualty rate in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe hitting 1.1 million in 2030, if the crisis continues. Within the same period, more than 1.8 million Nigerians are estimated to have been displaced in Adamawa, Yobe and Borno, with Borno mostly bearing the brunt. Many schools were forced to close, classrooms and equipment, destroyed, as the violence spread. The displacement adds to the push in the population movement which accounts for the incessant farmer-herder clashes in the north central and southern states. Elsewhere in the country, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements hold sway, making life uncomfortable to the citizens.
It is obvious that Nigeria is in huge stress due to these challenges, especially as some these crimes are asymmetrical and outside the conventional training of our security forces. Lawmakers in the Green Chambers are not the only Nigerians calling for extra-ordinary measures to contain the menace. The governor of Borno State, Prof Babagana Zulum, Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had on occasions, made such demand. They had particularly asked the government to engage foreigners with technical expertise to lead the battle against the terrorists, if the task had overwhelmed the country’s security services.
Whatever that is needed to be done to tackle insecurity in the country should be encouraged. Given the regularity of their engagements with insurgents and other criminal elements lately, there are concerns that the security personnel may have been overwhelmed in certain instances. This informs the suggestion for engaging foreigners with technical know-how and experience on targeted operations against the insurgents.
Experts however warn that in doing this, care should be taken to avoid handing over the security architecture of the country to mercenaries. They add that soldiers and other security operatives engaged in the onerous task of battling the insurgents be adequately motivated to do their job. There is also the compelling need for intelligence gathering and sharing among security agencies in the country.
The government should take steps to control the flow of illegal arms into the country, through strengthening the control of the borders to detect and seize any illegal importation of arms. Law enforcement agencies should also be encouraged to arrest and prosecute any person associated with the illegal flow of arms into the country.
Tackling poverty through massive job creation is also seen as a fundamental step in addressing insurgency and general insecurity in the land. Educating and engaging the youths will steer them from the path of crime and other vices.