Worries of killings: Rejigging national military architecture now non-negotiable
Rejigging Nigeria’s military architecture has been a recent call with reverberating resonance. This has taken vociferous dimension, particularly since recent spates of attacks and killings have put to question the viability of the prevailing military strength against the scourge of terrorism, banditry and their appendages. The Country in the last two weeks is known to have leaned on coals of heat of recurring insecurity attacks. The most recent double loaded attack on trains on board Kaduna in less than 24hours, last week, have spiked national outcry, awakening resounding intonation for the call to redefine the Country’s military architecture.
While several submissions have come forth and several perspectives keep roving from various quarters, the concern of the sensation of which apparently nowhere seems safe has put to fore the necessity to proffer solutions. From knocks on the Federal executives to the military under its command, to other relevant stake authorities as State Governments, the outpouring of castigations over failure to address the increasing spate of killings has grown beyond tolerable limit. It has become of necessity that beyond reservations, the prevailing situation be addressed with the full force of pragmatic responsiveness, incorporating all strategic and intelligent military parameters to build a system of formidable response against the prevailing scourge.
Again, the call for rejigging and/or better still, modifying the military architecture cannot be put out of place. While there has been call for replacement of service chiefs, it is apparent the challenges have transcended mere sacking existing military heads and appointing new chiefs. Recent experiences of resort to same have not yielded the desideratum, but rather, narratives have continually become worse as insecurity scourge keep waxing gross.
It is now apparent that the demands of rejigging the military architecture is one which transcend the myopic focus on replacement of service chiefs. The redefinition of patterns, the working structures, the intelligence and tactic system, personnel modification, sanitisation of the personnel cadres, reorientation programmes for them, and the reconstruction of the operating system, the arsenal profile, among others, are parameters now demanding redefinition in an elaborate reconstruction to position the military in the right formation for responsive virility to exterminate the scourge of terror in the Country.
A military seminar centred on “Intensifying Warriors Ethos,” would just be one reflection as a minute glimpse, giving expression to reorientation course of the military perspectives, among several of other parameters of systemic redefinition. At the opening of the Seminar in Abuja on Tuesday, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Faruk Yahaya reiterating the resolve of the Nigerian Army, following the recent spates of terror killings which have also recorded fatalities of military personnel, emphasised the significance of continuous review of the National Security Architecture to contain the prevailing threats.
The COAS who was represented by the Chief Of Policy and Plans (COPP), Major General Anthony Omozojie observed varied acts of insurgency, terrorism, kidnapping and banditry from Boko Haram Terrorists, Islamic States of West Africa (ISWAP), to Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), ECN and other terrorist organisations have continued to pose substantive threats to the nation.
“The volatile and complex security emergencies facing the nation have necessitated the continuous review of the National Security Architecture to contain the threats. Varied acts of insurgency, terrorism, kidnapping and banditry from BHT, ISWAP to IPOB, ECN and other terrorist organisations have continued to pose substantive threats to the nation. Our troops have however continued to respond assiduously to contain and decimate all adversaries in line with my maiden message on the assumption of office, that all adversaries of Nigeria must be defeated decisively. Thus, sustaining and insisting on a winning mentality must be inculcated into all troops. This seminar is coming at a time the adversaries have changed their tactics and are focused on kidnapping for ransom, attacking the nation’s critical infrastructure such as rail lines, power lines, communication networks, airports etc which is intended to cause paralysis in the country. It has become expedient to review the current security architecture and re-strategise to bridge observed gaps, as well as build the right fighting will for the threats,” he was quoted.
It is largely indisputable that the patterns and strategies of terror in the Country are evolving with new dynamics in the operation formations of various arms of perpetrating groups. It would only be rational and sensible that any military response to tackle same must be such which is proactively evolving, built and anchored on a formidable intelligence system, so virile to evoke inconceivable onslaught on the roving networks of terror across the Country. The demands before the Country’s military is now one of continuous update and upscaling of the working parameters for fortification of the architecture to outwit the scourge of terror networks. The prevailing orientation has proven its imbecilic profile, a virile architecture is now an outcry that is not negotiable.
