The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has said the fight against terrorism, banditry and insurgency in Nigeria remains difficult because criminal groups enjoy support from sponsors and some members of the public.
Musa was said to have spoken on Friday at The Platform Nigeria 2026 edition, an annual national discourse organised to mark Democracy Day.
The event which was monitored on Channels Television was hosted by The Senior Pastor and Founder, The Covenant Nation, Pastor Poju Oyemade.
The minister, who spoke on the theme, “Governance, Democracy and National Security,” said terrorists and bandits depend on local collaborators for food, water, intelligence, logistics and funding.
He stated that security agencies can only make lasting progress if citizens reject and expose those who assist criminal elements.
“The people are everything. If the people are ready and willing to make changes, changes will happen. “If the people are not willing, nothing will happen,” Musa said.
“Let me tell you, with what is happening with the challenges we have in the country – banditry, insurgency and terrorism – why does it look like it is so difficult to deal with them? And perhaps, we have people who are also encouraging and supporting these things because the terrorists and bandits live among the people.
“There are many stories about how people have helped them with food, water and information, and these are the things that keep them going. We call it the oxygen. Who is funding them? Who are they getting information from? And who are those providing the logistics that keep them going? It’s still the people.”
“Modern insecurity has made security operations more complex than conventional warfare,” the minister said.
“Today, security threats are often fueled by people who live among us and are part of our communities, unlike state-to-state conflicts where enemies were easy to identify,” he explained.
“Traditionally, conventional warfare was state-to-state, country-to-country. So you know who your enemy is. “The most dangerous aspect of battles or campaigns is when the enemy is within,” he said.
“The person you are protecting might be the number one enemy who is going to try and take you out as soon as he gets the chance.”
Musa emphasised that regardless of the efforts of security agencies in their operations, their success would be limited without the cooperation of the citizens.
“It is very important for us to always remember that the armed forces and the security agencies, whatever they do, if the people are not ready to support them, it makes the task extremely difficult,” he added.
The defence minister called on Nigerians to remain united, warning that terrorists and criminal groups often exploit divisions within society.
“We have to keep working together because it is those spaces that are between us that these people see and try to widen to divide us and we must not let that happen,” said Musa.
Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki also spoke at the event and said an independent legislature is key to sustaining democracy and holding government accountable in governance.
Saraki said a parliament that simply rubber-stamps executive proposals without due diligence has failed in its constitutional duty.
“A legislature that cannot say no is no legislature. A legislature that only receives executive proposals, approves them without scrutiny and goes home has not performed its constitutional duty. “It’s just been a ceremonial role,” he said.
He said the independence of the National Assembly should not be viewed as rebellion against the executive but as a condition for legitimate governance.
“Independence of National Assembly is not rebellion against the government of the day. “The National Assembly is the very thing that makes the government legitimate if it is independent because a mandate that is never tested is a mandate that no one can trust,” Saraki said.
