Get Guardian on Google• DHQ denies ceasefire with Boko Haram, ISWAP, others
In view of the federal government’s efforts to strengthen the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to assume its primary responsibilities, the Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (rtd.), has disclosed that the Nigerian Armed Forces have started plans to gradually withdraw from internal security operations across the country.
Musa, who acknowledged that prolonged internal security deployments had overstretched the armed forces, said ongoing investments in police recruitment, training, equipment and institutional reforms were intended to restore the police’s capacity to effectively manage domestic security challenges.
In the meantime, the Defence Headquarters has dismissed allegations that the federal government or the Nigerian military entered into a ceasefire agreement with Boko Haram, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) or any other terrorist group.
The military said its sustained and intensified offensives against terrorists, armed bandits, kidnappers and other criminal groups demonstrated that no such agreement existed.
The minister spoke at the Abuja Roundtable, “Promise to Proof: The Renewed Hope Conversation”, convened by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Presidential CNG Initiative and Electric Vehicles (Pi-CNG & EV), Ismaeel Ahmed, and organised by the APC Progressive Strategy Roundtable.
The minister also advocated reintroducing tollgates on major highways, supported by modern surveillance and vehicle identification technology, to strengthen security and curb criminals’ movement.
Addressing concerns about the military’s increasing involvement in internal security, Musa explained that soldiers were being deployed to confront threats that had overwhelmed conventional law enforcement agencies.
He stressed that such deployments should not become permanent substitutes for effective policing, noting that the government was strengthening the police so the armed forces could refocus on their core constitutional responsibilities.
The minister explained that military involvement became necessary when security challenges exceeded police capacity, adding that the ultimate objective was to build a police institution capable of independently maintaining internal security.
However, he noted that improved collaboration among the armed forces, police and other security agencies was already yielding operational gains, describing the current level of interagency cooperation as unprecedented.
On the security situation nationwide, the minister disclosed that troops had neutralised over 300 terrorists and bandits, including over 10 commanders, in operations conducted during the preceding week.
He attributed the gains to improved intelligence gathering, coordinated operations, increased defence spending and the acquisition of modern surveillance and combat equipment, among others.
A media report had claimed that the federal government entered into a secret ceasefire agreement with the Boko Haram faction led by Bakura Doro, which allegedly contributed to the relative calm in parts of the North-East for about three months.
However, the Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Samaila Uba, said that ongoing military operations and the successes recorded against armed groups showed that troops were not relenting.
On reports of terrorists and bandits moving into parts of the country where they were previously less active, the defence spokesman described the development as evidence of the impact of ongoing military operations but said the Armed Forces were not taking the situation lightly.
