- He noted that Nigerians want immediate intervention from members of the Armed Forces without knowing the logistical challenges involved
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has admitted that slow and delayed response to the nefarious activities of bandits and terrorists has not helped in addressing the challenges of insecurity.
He, however, said the deplorable state of road networks and treacherous terrain had hampered the ability of the military to respond swiftly to terror and bandit attacks across Nigeria.
General Musa made the disclosure while fielding questions regarding the security challenges in Nigeria on Thursday’s edition of Channels Television’s political programme Politics Today.
He noted that Nigerians want immediate intervention from members of the Armed Forces without knowing the logistical challenges involved.
He stated that the terrorists don’t stay long in the area they attack as they strike and disappear from the scene before the arrival of the military.
“A lot of people think (members of) the military are magicians; we are not, we are humans just like anybody. Most times, in these areas where attacks occur, there are either no networks or the roads are very bad.
“By the time the information reaches you, the terrorists or bandits already know—they strike quickly, and within five minutes they have disappeared because they have easier mobility to move out as fast as possible,” he said on Thursday.
The defence chief explained that in the North-East, the threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) makes movement particularly slow.
“A distance of 10km requires someone with a hand-held scanner to walk ahead, sweeping for IEDs. If you speed up and hit one, everybody in that vehicle is dead. So you have to balance responding quickly with staying alive to do your work,” he noted.
General Musa added that some terrains remain “absolutely impassable” for military vehicles, making it more difficult to reach volatile remote areas on time.
According to him, these realities contribute to delays that many citizens are oblivious to.