Nigeria’s managers of information, both in government and media, have been warned against disseminating information about plans the military have to nip the insurgents.
A security expert stated this on a TVC programme monitored by The DEFENDER in Lagos on Friday.
Asked if, considering the attacks between April and November 2018 on military facilities by Boko Haram insurgents, he could agree that the terrorists have been technically defeated, he said “You don’t technically defeat insurgents whose problem is ideological. What you do is to decimate them by changing their ideology though while you continue with your action against them”, he said.
Not fully dismissing possibility of existent moles within, the security expert frowned at unhelpful attitude of people, who join in reporting the plans of military as to what they intend to do at certain period against insurgents.
Another contributor who spoke to The DEFENDER in Lagos Friday said, “The media practitioners, who force intelligence officials through complaints and claim of right to freedom of information failing to accept that not all security information should be let out to the public, are part of the reasons insurgencies still remain with us.
“The moment our managers of information, particularly the journalists stop seeing intelligence workers as every other person and then begin to let them be, doing their job secretly, allowing the government, especially a trusted government like the country currently has, be the general overseer of what they do, we will begin to see drastic overrun of anything terrorism and other criminality in the land,.
“It is only surprising that most of our journalists need special training to be told that you don’t reveal your security tactics in time of war against certain enemies of the country.
“That is what is affecting this war against insecurity caused by elements, who in the case of Boko Haram, politically motivated killers of innocent citizens, IPOB and those in the creeks of Niger Delta from whom kidnap and economic terrorism have now spread all over the country, appear to still rear their heads despite verifiable successes the government has achieved in that direction.
“Don’t forget that we have top politicians who in the guise of playing opposition politics openly fought government in support of Niger Delta Avengers and IPOB. If government had received the kind of support they got and still get from the people of North East in the South East, South South of the country, there will be no militancy today in those zones because, the powers wilded by those terrorists of the South are far less than those of North East which our military have drastically decimated but the little, little issues being experienced due to the way you media people handle reports of the fight against insurgents and other criminals.
“I want to advise you journalists to know that patriotism is the word for those who will regardless of anything be part of effort and tactics devices to ensure security of their country and their people.
“I will also advise our military, police and DSS not to bother about who is complaining against their efforts to manage intelligence so long they know that what they are doing is in the interest of national security,” he said.
