Nigeria will be a safer and more secure country before President Muhammadu Buhari leaves office on May 29, 2023.
This is according to the Chief of Staff to the President, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, who spoke on Sunday at the 20th convocation lecture of the graduating cadets of regular course 69 of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna.
Gambari reiterated his principal’s commitment to tackling the menace of banditry, terrorism, and other violent crimes ravaging different parts of the country. According to him, the President is consistently supporting the nation’s armed forces with the necessary and most sophisticated equipment to enable them to perform their constitutional duties effectively.
“It is on record that he has provided the military with sophisticated equipment with which to perform their duty,” he said.
“By the end of his tenure around May next year, Nigeria will (be) a safer, more secured country than when he assumed office as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic.”
While saluting the military for displaying professionalism in defending the nation’s territorial integrity, Gambari said the Federal Government has taken the welfare of personnel a priority.
He equally said the Commander-in-Chief is more concerned about the security of Nigerians, adding that the deployment of ICT has helped the military in confronting some security challenges.
National security, the President’s aide, said is a collective responsibility and as such, Nigerians should not just leave the matter to security agencies.
Gambari’s remarks come a day after President Buhari said his administration has taken steps to address the security challenges across the country.
In his last Independence Day Anniversary address on Saturday, Buhari said he has made “appreciable progress” in core areas of economy and security since he assumed office in May 2015.
He also identified with the pains of millions of Nigerians, assuring them that their resilience and patience would not be in vain.
“As we continue to de-escalate the security challenges that confronted us at the inception of this administration, newer forms alien to our country began to manifest especially in the areas of kidnappings, molestations/killings of innocent citizens, banditry, all of which are being addressed by our security forces.
“I share the pains Nigerians are going through and I assure you that your resilience and patience would not be in vain as this administration continues to reposition as well as strengthen the security agencies to enable them to deal with all forms of security challenges,” the President said.