The former Chief of Defence, Lucky Irabor has said that there is a need to declare war on the growing insurgency and banditry bedevilling Nigeria.
Irabor while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday said Nigeria lacks the needed legal instrument indicating that the country is currently at war with extreme violence and other forms of criminality.
According to the former CDS, Nigeria and its government are only assuming that they are at war but nothing shows that this is the true case of things on the ground.
“There is no legal instrument indicating that Nigeria is at war. We are only assuming that we are at war,” Irabor said.
When asked if there was any need for the government to declare war, Irabor answered in the affirmative.
The former CDS added that “In order to aggregate the element of state power and direct it to the war efforts” there is a need for certain frameworks and policies to be put in place.
“It would make a huge difference because resourcing, of course, will now be channelled and accountability frameworks would now be properly outlined in such a manner that we would be able to see results for some of the expenditures we make,” Irabor noted.
Further highlighting some of the impact of such an approach, if adopted by the government, the retired General said such a move would not only tackle the line of tactical operations but also all the deployment of state power beyond the military strength.
He said, “In my book, I have canvassed for a pivoting away from military or if you like, hard power to utilising other elements which involve soft power but majorly governance, policies among other things that would help us.
“Such that, if we are able to reduce the number of out-of-school children, you know those who are available for criminals to employ, those who do not have jobs and so many other things,” he said.
Adding that this strategy would be effective in the war against insurgency and banditry, he said, “Then of course we would be reducing those who perhaps would have been recruited” for criminal activities among other things.