The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, has said that it is an error to believe that security in Nigeria could be provided exclusively by security agencies.
The Army Chief disclosed this while delivering the 2024 distinguished personality lecture titled, “The Roles and Contributions of the Nigerian Army to National Development,” organised by the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin.
Lagbaja, who was represented by the Chief of Training (Army), Major General Sanni Gambo Mohammed, said that it is unrealistic for security personnel of around 2 million to secure the entire Nigerian population of over 200 million.
He said urged that every citizen get involved in the security of lives and properties in the country and not leave it only to the security agencies.
“There is an erroneous belief that security is to be provided and ensured without interruption only and exclusively by the security agencies, particularly the Nigerian Army wherever deployed,” Gen. Lagbaja said, adding that this notion has “led to apathy on the part of the public who feel less concerned except when their safety is directly threatened by activities of antisocial elements.
“In a country of over 200 million people, it is unrealistic for security operatives totalling around 2 million, including an army of just over 100,000 active personnel without a reserve force to secure the entire population.”
The COAS, who said that the Federal Government was committed to recruitment of more hands in the army as promised, stressed that the Nigerian Army, along with other security agencies, is under-resourced.
Lagbaja further identified challenges such as inadequate funding, inadequate manpower, lack of industrial base, and poor understanding of security by Nigerians, as factors militating against optimal performance by the service.
