A Public Affairs Analyst, Mahmood Othman, believes that the National Security Council meeting held in Abuja on Thursday was long overdue, considering the security situation in Nigeria.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise daily on Friday, he said that he did not expect that the leadership of the country would have waited to be put under such pressure before taking drastic steps to address the situation.
He, however, noted that one of the issues he had with the resolution was what he saw as a stifling of Freedom of Expression, as he believed that Governor Nyako of Adamawa State’s condemnation was overdone.
He shared the view that as a former Chief of Naval Staff, and Governor who is on the ground, Nyako must have cogent justification for what he was saying about the terrorist activities in the Northeast and he expected that those information would be taken seriously rather than being treated as being political.
On the use of the word “Genocide” which has been seen as a strong word that could cause uproar, he said that this was a product of frustration as there had been no proper communication. More so, English was not Nigeria’s primary language and just his choice of word should not be used as an excuse to discard his views, some of which may be valid and useful in finding solution.
He said that it was normal for the State Governor to be frustrated because no one would expect that after the attack on a secondary school in Buni Yadi in Yobe State, another school in the region would have its students abducted by terrorists.
Speaking about the abduction of the schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State, Othman said that allowing the school to be opened at the time was naïve, as he expected that all schools in the state would have been closed.
While explanations have been provided for the presence of the girls in school, he wondered why adequate security had not been provided for the girls, he insisted that the spate of attacks in the past and in recent times were enough to prepare the state for such possibilities.
He also berated the security agencies in the state for allowing the incident of the abduction to happen. He wondered how so many people would sneak into a state under Emergency Rule, dressed like military men and the real military personnel were unable to identify the impending danger.
He said that there were no excuses for Nigeria not to be able to protect its territory, claiming that there were no specific borders along the boundaries of Nigeria and neighbouring countries in the Northeast. The forests, according to him were accessible and should be secured.
Mr. Othman expects that the quality of communication between security agencies should be upgraded to standard as has been recommended by many concerned Nigerians, but so should the communication between governments of states, the local governments, and between the Federal Government and the states.
He added that state governments should be listened to and taken seriously in the quest to end insurgency as they were major stakeholders in the matter having invested a lot of resources in empowering the Police, and having also been at the receiving end of the terrorist attacks.
Mr. Othman, who is also a delegate at the National Conference, offered his view on the makeup and happenings at the conference. He said that the conference had been a mix of different shades of people and ideas; while some were good, some were bizarre.
Pointing out the attitude of delegates to time keeping, and double standards in giving audience to delegates, among the issues he was most unhappy with, he said that the delegates had, however, started calming down as the committees were being set up.
He also said that the few young people present at the conference were learning the ropes, explaining that he could identify with the youthful exuberance being displayed by the youths who had been complaining of not being carried along. He added that what remained most important was the outcome of the entire exercise, and how to make it beneficial to the continued unity of Nigeria.
