A former Chief of Army Staff and Minister of Interior, Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, says certain issues of security require good governance to solve.
Dambazau stated this at the opening of a 3-Day Seminar on Leadership in National Security Course 5/2022 of the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC) on Monday in Abuja.
The seminar, organised in collaboration with Peace Building Development Consult (PBDC), has participants drawn from the military, other security agencies and relevant stakeholders.
Dambazau said that every nation depended on its security, adding that national security was about the security of the nation and everything in it.
According to him, national security is not just about the protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a state, but also about the well-being and security of the people.
“It is not every security issue that we can solve with the use of force. There are certain issues of security that require just the application of conflict resolution mechanisms.
“There are certain issues of security that require just good governance like the issues of health, education, environment and so on, to tackle.
“So, once you get some of these issues right, you are bound to reduce violence within the society.
“You are bound to reduce criminality, violence and so on and so forth,” he said.
The former army chief also said that civilians had a lot of role to play in national security, adding that border security was also paramount in addressing national security.
He called for the strengthening of all government institutions to be able to carry out their responsibilities effectively.
He urged participants to show commitment to the course with a view to proffering solutions to some of the security problems being confronted by the nation.
The Director General of the centre, retired Maj.-Gen. Garba Wahab, said the course was designed with the believe that solutions to Nigeria’s security problems would only come from within Nigerian environment.
Wahab said there was need for serious level of collaboration, cooperation and communication between security agencies to be able to understand each other.
He challenged the participants to create network among themselves to be able to relate and communicate with others.
Wahab said that tackling insecurity also required the collaboration of people at the grassroots.
“You must find a way of relating with the average person on the street. That way, information, intelligence and definite aspect of what is happening can be given to you with that information.
“Without intelligence from the rural community, from the local people, you can’t do anything and that is one of the things we are emphasising,” he said. (NAN)