Governor Nasir el-Rufa’i of Kaduna state has again appealed for a North-west theatre command to counter-insurgency operations in the North-west, noting that insurgency in the region portends danger for the 2023 elections and census.
Speaking during presentation of the state Security Reports for the second and third quarters of 2022 by the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, on Friday, he noted that the proposed theatre command would “enhance coordination of the resources of Armed Forces, the Police, the DSS, state vigilance services, hunters and other local volunteers to fight the insurgents.”
The governor, who lamented that the security report still shows that killings, kidnappings, injuries and threats to the livelihoods had continued, said “the insurgency in the North-west is not only more serious than what exists now in the North-east.”
He, however, warned that “it presents a clear danger to the conduct of the 2023 elections and census if not nipped in the bud now.”
He said, “We publish these reports in fulfilment of our obligation to the residents of this state. Citizens have legitimate expectations to be provided with consistently accurate accounts of what is going on and to be updated on the measures being taken to address the security challenge. Figures show a pattern of reductions in the gravity of security incidents in the second and third quarters of 2022, compared to the first quarter. This is a consequence of the intensification of offensive security operations against the bandits in recent months.
“We have for years called for a comprehensive and sustained assertion of the prerogatives of the state, through combined air and ground military and police operations. This is the most effective way to protect our people, uphold law and order and enhance the ability of our people to the peaceful pursuit of their livelihoods.”
While thanking the federal government for finally authorising the launch of the military and police offensives, el-Rufai stressed that the geopolitical zone “requires a comprehensive and consistent sweep across the North-west and Niger states for sustained success.”
“Our interventions since 2015 include supporting the federal security agencies deployed in our state with vehicles and other logistics, collaborating with other frontline states to fund military operations in the 2015-2016 period and investments in security infrastructure and technology.
“The extent of interventions in security by the state government can do is constitutionally limited. The federal government has to more vigorously exercise its constitutional powers and urgently spearhead a national effort to strengthen our security forces. The federal government has to sustain the effort to promptly address the needs of the SSS, military and police for modern technology, advanced armaments, equipment and more boots on the ground.”
