The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Lucky Irabor has said that Nigeria requires an all-of-society approach to curtail the various forms of insecurity facing it.
At the opening of a two-day workshop on “Use of Broadcasting in Complementing the Military in Conflict Mitigation and Management” on Thursday in Abuja, General Irabor, who was represented by the Director of Training at the Defence Headquarters, Rear Admiral Tanko Pani, said that the complex nature of the security challenges requires multi-sectoral and specialised efforts from the society.
He said that the Armed Forces of Nigeria have reviewed its strategies and policies and gave prominence to the whole-of-society approach, to ensure the effective attainment of military goals and national development objectives.
“National security in Nigeria is a complex issue that requires a multifaceted approach from all sectors of the society.
“The country has been grappling with various forms of insecurity in the past decade which include terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal clashes, oil theft, piracy, drug and human trafficking, illegal unregulated and unreported fishing, and cyber crimes, among others.
“To curtail this security situation, an all-of-society approach is required.
“The approach involves the participation of the government, security agencies, civil organisations, religious leaders, traditional leaders, the press, and the general public”, he said.
Irabor said that the military has been recording successes in the fight against terrorists and other non-state actors in the last decade.
“In order to tackle and subdue the security challenges in the country, several military operations and exercises have been launched by the Armed Forces of Nigeria across the country since 2009.
“Recently, the Federal Government adopted a non-kinetic approach by developing a policy framework and National Action Plan for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (NAPPCVE).
“The plan recognises the integrated roles of the Armed Forces of Nigeria with the larger society as critical, by adopting a whole of Government and whole of society approach.
“Consequently, the combination of kinetic and non-kinetic efforts have led to a lot of successes in the ongoing operations conducted by the Armed Forces of Nigeria across the country”, he said.
Irabor explained that the Non-Kinetic military operations involved the use of psychological, diplomatic negotiations, and economic sanctions to achieve military objectives.
He added that it included civil-military operations, cyber warfare, covert intelligence operations, and media operations, among others.
“These operations can be used in combination with each other or with traditional military action to achieve specific objectives.
“They are often used in situations where traditional military activities are either not feasible or not appropriate”, Irabor said.
He further said that they can be used to achieve strategic objectives without causing unnecessary damage or loss of life.
The CDS said that the workshop was aimed at re-directing broadcast professionals to promote the benefits derivable from the whole-of-society approach in conflict management.
“It is hoped that the training will assist in bringing synergy between the Armed Forces of Nigeria and the media in curtailing the various security challenges in the country”, Irabor said.
He appreciated all the officers and men of the Armed Forces for their relentless sacrifices and efforts to secure the country.
The Director General of the Nigeria Broadcasting Commission, Malam Balarabe Ilelah stressed the need for the media to support military campaigns aimed at tackling the country’s security challenges.
“To achieve this, media should be encouraged by all stakeholders to exhibit professionalism and avoid creating tensions or confusion in the minds of the citizens when reporting security matters”.
According to him, this is because of the inherent implications on the country’s corporate existence.
He added that broadcasting was spontaneous in nature and could reach millions of people at the same time.
“And some of its recipients are passive because they don’t question the integrity and credibility of whatever is transmitted through such medium.
“It is against this background that NBC is tasked with the responsibility of regulating the broadcast content”, he further said.
Ilelah noted that the workshop was timely, and called on journalists to avoid using anonymous sources to reveal sensitive intelligence to the public that may affect security operations.
