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| Chief of Training (Army) Maj.-Gen. Sani Mohammed COAS Representative |
The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya has called on all Security forces in Nigeria to deal with the cooperation and coordination between relevant government actors in order to tackle the security challenges bedeviling the nation.
The COAS made the call today, 6 April 2023 at the auspicious 2023 Inter-Agency Seminar for the AWCN Course 7/2023 with the theme "Streamlining Initiatives Towards Effective Inter-Agency Collaborations in Nigeria" drawn from the vision of the Chief of Army Staff which is to have "A Professional Nigerian Army ready to accomplish assigned missions within a joint environment in defence of Nigeria".
The seminar is another step towards enhancing interagency cooperation and coordination among MDAs as well as an opportunity for them to discuss thematic issues affecting the management of the security sector.
Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, who was the Special Guest of Honour, represented by the Chief of Training (Army) Maj.-Gen. Sani Mohammed said dialogue and cooperation between government and non governmental actors is vital in preventing and countering terrorism and other forms of violence.
"We need to see the broader public, local communities and the private sector as partners and stakeholders in our collective effort and countering the threats around us.
He said, the Security forces in Nigeria and in our region are currently operating in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous environment, requiring operational leaders that understand the changing dynamics under which they operate. The society is still faced with violent crimes and extremism which has led to radicalization, terrorism, banditry, militancy and other criminal tendencies in the nation.
The COAS added that the traditional measures undertaken to counter these criminalities in our nation have been insufficient so far in tackling these threats and therefore require the streamlining of efforts from all actors and stakeholders in order to fully contain them.
"They must no longer be viewed as passive but active objects of security and law enforcement activities. This we must achieve through streamlining our efforts for the collective goal of enhancing our national security, streamlining all initiatives for countering threats to security will be premised on effective partnerships between all the actors."
The COAS noted that the civil society is very important stakeholder in this regard as it helps to create the space for constructive engagement. He said, between the States and its citizens, fostering trust and understanding as they both take ownership of the strategies put in place to counter their collective threat.
Lt Gen Yahaya pointed out that the partnerships between these stakeholders also helps to eliminate mistrust, conceptual misunderstandings, and differences in understanding of the national security issues.
"Indeed, The time for the full involvement of society in efforts to counter our internal security challenges is overdue. It is in the understanding that no stakeholder or single actor by themselves could successfully counter the internal security challenges in the country that informed my vision on assuming office as the chief of Army staff" he stressed.
Earlier in his remarks, the Commandant, Army War College Nigeria, Maj.-Gen. Bamidele Alabi said the seminar is part of the curriculum of the AWCN Course 7/2023 which assembled on 6 Feb 23 and was inaugurated on 17 Feb 23.
General Alabi said the Interagency Cooperation and Coordination module is designed to equip participants with the knowledge required to operate with governmental and non-governmental agencies.
Accordingly, during this module, participants have been acquainted with the fundamentals of civil- military affairs and the legal considerations for their actions and inactions during operations.
He noted that The seminar is another step towards enhancing interagency cooperation and coordination among MDAS as well as an opportunity for them to discuss thematic issues affecting the management of the security sector.
SpyeTV News reports that Professor T. Cadir of the Department of Political Science, Kaduna State city and Major General GA Wahab (rtd), Director al Nigerian Army Resource Centre were resource persons and the participants had a robust interactive session with contributions.
A total of 74 participants drawn from the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force as well as officers from Republics of Benin, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Liberia, Morocco, Niger, and The Gambia, 32 participants from the Security Agencies consisting of Nigeria Police, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps.
