Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) says globalization, international antagonism and hostile media are hampering the fight against insecurity in Nigeria.
Musa said this on Monday in Abuja at the opening of the 6th Edition of the Nigerian Security Expo (NISECEXPO), with the theme, Home Land Security – Africa’23.
The CDS, represented by Maj-Gen. Emeka Onumajuru, the Chief of Defence Training and Operations was the guest speaker at the expo.
The defence chief spoke on Africa’s Defence Force Participation in Peace Missions and Role in Strengthening Global Peace: West Africa Peace Keeping Mission: ECOMOG in Perspective.
“I will use this opportunity to respond to the issues on why the armed forces is slow in achieving the same speed recorded during ECOMOG era to restore normalcy in Nigeria.
“Many security analysts have attributed the development to the meddling of politicians in the affairs of the military.
“Others are of the opinion that the capabilities of the Nigerian military had declined since ECOMG operations.
“I want to state that presently, the armed forces had acquired better and much more sophisticated equipment and also, received improved training, compared to the ECOMOG days.”
He also said the situations surrounding the operations of the Nigerian military in its efforts to restore peace and security in Nigeria were not the same with the period of ECOMOG.
Musa added that the level of globalization in the 1990s when Nigeria participated in the ECOMOG operation was not the same with the current situation.
According to him, every action of the Nigeria troop is currently being placed under scrutiny in the social media which were often made available to the public, including the insurgents.
“Consequently, members of Civil Society Organisations and other activist groups levy unfounded allegations against the troops that serve as huge distractions.
“The consequences are that the troops are more careful in dealing with the insurgents.
“Some of the insurgents could form various right groups or become activists or social media influencers while they carry out activities against the Nigeria Military
“This was not the case during the ECOMOG operation period,” he said.
The CDS further said that hostile media was another challenge being faced currently by the Nigeria military, which was not in existence during the ECOMOG era.
He said the advent of social media without corresponding monitoring and regulation of bloggers and social media influencers had affected the response of Nigeria military to security threats.
