- * BMO Describes It As Reflection Of Stronger Resolve To End Insecurity
By Chinwendu Agoha (Governance Reporter)
President Muhammadu Buhari's admonition to the new service chiefs that the country is in a 'state of emergency' is an acknowledgment of the magnitude of the nation's security challenges, the Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has said.
In a statement by its Chairman, Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary, Cassidy Madueke, BMO said it shows that the President is not unaware of the threats posed by criminal elements in several parts of the country.
"For some time now, opposition elements and some irascible critics have sought to paint President Buhari as an uncaring man who is not concerned about the security and welfare of the average Nigerian.
"Some socio-cultural groups even went to the ridiculous extent of claiming that he was providing cover for criminal elements from some parts of the country to engage in what they say was a land grab.
"But the President's charge to the new service chiefs showed that he knows far more than his traducers give him credit for, and that is why he was brutally frank enough to admit that the country is in a state of emergency without declaring one.
"We see this as a subtle message to the leadership of the armed forces and a clear warning to criminal elements and the remnants of Boko Haram insurgents holed up in the fringes of Lake Chad".
The group urged Nigerians to see President Buhari's admonition as a marching order.
"Even before he appointed a new military leadership led by Major-General Lucky Irabor, the President had given indications of a tougher stance on insecurity.
"This had since the beginning of the year reflected in the military taking the battle to Boko Haram insurgents, including the ones that attempted to take over an army base in Marte, Borno State and the recent offensive in Sambisa forest
"We also invite Nigerians to note how bandits in Zamfara State have in recent times been decimated in multiple airstrikes and not to forget a recent air raid on bandits' enclave along the Kaduna-Abuja expressway.
"Many of these internal security operations happened few days before the new security chiefs came on board and we have no doubt that the new military leadership will build on these achievements".
BMO also urged community leaders to provide support for security agencies in their quest to stem the tide of insecurity in some parts of the country. NNL.
