By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
The National Security Adviser (NSA), Major General Babagana Monguno has revealed that President Muhammadu Buhari is desirous to see peace return to every part of Nigeria just as he charged the Heads of Security Agencies to ensure that nothing hampers the smooth conduct of the November 6 Anambra state Governorship Election.
General Monguno spoke to State House Correspondents after Wednesday’s crucial meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) summoned by President Buhari.
According to the NSA: “Today’s meeting of the National Security Council focused its attention on several issues, primarily the elections in Anambra State, which will be held on the 6th of November. Council observed recent trends in which a lot of violent activities have been taking place and Council is desirous of seeing a hitch free election being conducted by next month”.
“Now the problem here is that in as much as the government wants to conduct peaceful elections, there are non-state actors who have been heating up the polity, who have made all kinds of attempts to stymie orderly elections for next month”.
Explaining further he said: “The President has directed that under no circumstances will anything be allowed to stop the elections from taking place successfully, the people have a right to vote, they have a right to select their leader, and no group or individual will be allowed to stimulate anarchy and chaos leading to murderous activities.
“The President has made it very clear that the armed forces, security agencies and law enforcement agencies must make sure that the elections take place. If it means overwhelming the entire environment with the presence of security agencies. There are so many implications for elections to be sabotaged by non-state actors. In the first place, we’re in a democracy. Secondly, it is important to note that if these non-state actors should succeed in destroying the potential for orderly elections, then it is natural that other parts of the country will also want to copy this situation.
“Secondly, it’s not something that President Buhari will even contemplate a situation in which he is boxed into a corner. The mere thought that a group of non-state actors want to portray his government as not being able to be firm is totally out of the question. The tail cannot wag the dog, it is totally unacceptable and again, we in the security and intelligence community have been trying as much as possible to talk with the leadership in the Southeast, to make them aware of the fact that President Buhari is not averse to the aspirations of the people of the Southeast, so long as whatever they desire to achieve, they do it through the normal prescribed manner, either legislative, legal, or whatever, for as long as it is within the confines of legitimacy, President Buhari does not have a problem with that.
But any action that is outlandish, any action that typifies roguery, the usurpation of the authority of the state is not going to be tolerated”.
However, the NSA said that the Federal Government is mindful of the fact that Nigerians, being what they are, also need to understand that if these non-state actors should go out on a limb and extend the frontiers of violence, and begin to kill people, there is a possibility that reprisal attacks can take place in other parts of the country, which is what we do not want to happen. So, we’re working with the community leaders, with the governors and everybody to ensure that they bring their people, restrain them on the leash.
General Monguno said that was one of the aspect that was discussed during the meeting just as other aspects basically have to do with the current state of insecurity in the country and the sub region.
Also, the NSA said other highlights of the meeting were that the Chief of Defense Staff, Service Chiefs and Intelligence Heads briefed Council, adding that: “I can tell you that for the land forces, they’ve recorded a lot of successes in the last two months. We’ve had a steady increase in the number of returnees, both combatants and non-combatants, from the theatre of operation; both from the Islamic State of West Africa Province and the Boko Haram enclaves”.
