By Jane Okafor, Abuja
Former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa (rtd.), has given insight into why the Southwest is safer and zone doing relatively better than other geopolitical zones of Nigeria.
Musa, who has just been nominated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a ministerial office to replace the Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru, who had recently resigned on health grounds, said that the regional cooperation among the Southwest governors to tackle insecurity explained why the area is doing well unlike other zones plagued by banditry, kidnapping, terrorism and killings.
He warned that the increasing cross-border incursions by armed groups into parts of the North-Central and Southwest regions will persist unless governors strengthen regional collaboration and security coordination.
He made this known while speaking during his ministerial screening at the Senate Chamber in Abuja on Wednesday.
He praised the Southwest for what he described as a model of regional unity, submitting that the zone’s relative security calm is not accidental but the result of deliberate cooperation among its governors.
“Why the Southwest seems to be doing very well is because all the governors agreed together. Regionally, governors must come together, because two, three are better than one.”
Musa warned that armed groups operating in the North exploit Nigeria’s porous borders and the lack of joint security structures among neighbouring states to make entry and exit movement to cause problems in the North.
He explained that bandits operating around Sokoto, Niger Republic, and other border corridors are emboldened by their ability to flee across international lines, knowing Nigerian forces cannot pursue them once they enter another country.
“Bandits do not respect borders at all,” he warned. “Where they get their strength is the ability to run when you attack them, especially around the Sokoto axis into Niger. Once they get into Niger, you can’t touch them until they come back.”
He called for urgent support to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) stationed in N’Djamena, insisting that its capacity must be expanded to secure border areas stretching toward Mali and Burkina Faso, where new threats are emerging.
Musa cited the recent incursions into Kwara State and attempts to push further into the Southwest by bandits to these same cross-border movements, warning that the country must act quickly to prevent militants from pushing deeper south.
“We’re beginning to have those incursions into Kwara, coming down southwest. We must stop them from getting further than that,” he said.
The minister added that ongoing security efforts are being reorganized to create a more unified front, emphasizing that all MDAs involved in national security must understand and perform their roles.
“Action has already been taken. What remains is to harmonize everything and ensure all the MDAs know they have a role to play,” he said.
