…NSA Ribadu Assures Nigerians of Renewed Security Strategy Amid Rising Terrorist Threats and IED Attacks.
In a strong expression of concern over the nation’s deteriorating security landscape, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that “enough is enough,” issuing firm directives to the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and the heads of all security agencies to take immediate and decisive action to stem the tide of violence and restore peace across the country.
The President’s forceful declaration was made on Wednesday during a high-level closed-door security briefing held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The meeting, described as intense and comprehensive, was convened in response to the increasing number of violent incidents and terrorist activities plaguing several parts of Nigeria.
In a press satetment following the meeting, NSA Nuhu Ribadu assured State House correspondents that the President’s directives have been received and are already being acted upon by all relevant security outfits.
“Mr. President gave us a chance to come and brief him, and it lasted very long.
“We gave him an update on what has been the case and what is going on. And even when he was out there, before coming back, he was constantly in touch,” Ribadu stated.
“He was giving directives, he was following developments, and we in charge of the security, got the opportunity today (yesterday), to come and brief him properly for hours. And it was very detailed. And it was exhaustive. It was complete. And a to z, what has been the case and what’s been happening today.”
Ribadu noted that the President is deeply involved in the country’s security affairs and is relentlessly pushing for stability.
“We listened and we took instructions from him. We got new directives. The fact is, Mr. President is insisting and working so hard to ensure that we have peace, security and stability in our country.”
According to the NSA, the President’s marching orders are already yielding results, with security agencies intensifying operations in hotspots across the country.
“We also carried out his instructions. We went round, the chiefs were all out where we had these incidents of insecurity in Plateau State, Benue State, even Borno, these particular three states, and we gave him a feedback, because he directed us to go meet with the political authorities there.”
Ribadu emphasized the importance of local government and community collaboration in addressing the crisis:
“The issue of insecurity often is not just for the government. It involves the subunits. They are the ones who are directly with the people, especially if some of the challenges are more or less bordering on community problems.
“You need to work with the communities. You need to work with the local governments. We need to work with the governors, especially the governors.”
Speaking further, Ribadu highlighted the President’s unwavering concern:
“The President continues to direct that. We should be doing that, and that’s what we are able to do and we are very happy, very satisfied with the instructions and the directives given by Mr. President this evening. He’s so worried and concerned, he insisted that enough is enough, and we are working to ensure that we restore peace and security and all of us are there.”
He added, “The armed forces are there, the Civil Police, intelligence communities, they are there. They are working there 24 hours, and we feel that we have done enough to believe that we are on the right course, and we’ll be able to be on top of things.
“We are getting the cooperation of the leadership at the state level, and everybody. So we are good. It’s not really 100 per cent that everything is safe and secure, but we are going there.”
On the prevailing nature of the attacks, Ribadu said most of the casualties were from IEDs planted by terrorists.
“Most of the death and casualties we recorded are a result of IEDs, improvised explosive devices that they planted for innocent people to come, and just anything on top of it, it explodes and then often you have large number of casualties.”
He lamented the tactics of insurgents who take advantage of periods of relative calm to stage cowardly attacks.
“We have also seen opportunistic attacks. After a period of relative peace, they will come cowardly, go around and do a bad thing. And for your information, when you are having peace and you are beginning to get used to it, if one bad incident happened, you forget, the periods that you enjoyed peacefully. That is what is going on.”
Acknowledging the relentless effort of security personnel, Ribadu said, “There are people who don’t sleep, who walk throughout, who do not go for any break or holiday, who are making sacrifices just for us to achieve this semblance of peace that we are enjoying, and they will continue to be there. I think it is also appropriate that people should take note of that there are many who are doing this work.”
While acknowledging that challenges remain, Ribadu assured Nigerians that “we are on right track. We are on the right direction, and we will not relent. We will not sit down, we will not stop until when we are able to achieve results.”
He concluded with a call for continued national cooperation and patience, stressing that security is a shared responsibility and not one to be shouldered by the federal government alone.
Echezona Okafor.
