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Lagbaja said securing Nigeria requires the cooperation and contribution of every citizen.
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, has said it’s unrealistic for security personnel numbering around two million to secure the entire Nigerian population of over 200 million.
The COAS said this while delivering the 2024 distinguished personality lecture, ‘The Roles and Contributions of the Nigerian Army to National Development,’ organised by the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin.
Lagbaja, represented by the Chief of Training (Army), Major General Sanni Gambo Mohammed, argued that it’s erroneous to believe only security agencies, particularly the Nigerian Army, can secure the country.
He stressed that securing Nigeria requires the cooperation and contribution of every citizen, who he noted have been less concerned about playing such a role.
“There is an erroneous belief that security is to be provided and ensured without interruption only and exclusively by the security agencies, particularly Nigerian Army wherever deployed,” Gen. Lagbaja said.
“This 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. The Nigerian Army along with other security agencies is under-resourced.
“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,” he said.
Lagbaja emphasised that the Nigerian Army, along with other security agencies, is under-resourced, promising that the Federal Government was committed to recruiting more hands.
The COAS identified four challenges, including inadequate funding, inadequate manpower, lack of industrial base and poor understanding of security by Nigerians as factors limiting the ability of the service to function optimally.
