President Bola Tinubu has reiterated the call for the establishment of a regional standby force that will serve as a rapid deployment tool to combat both existing threats and the ones that could emerge.
It will also serve as a strong deterrence to large-scale weapon smuggling.
The President gave the call at the opening ceremony of the African Counter-Terrorism Summit in Abuja today.
According to him, terrorism must be banished, as the menace threatens farmers from their farms, children from their schools, and businesswomen from their sources of livelihood, thereby putting society and government into confusion and disarray.
He added that the fight against terrorism required a collective approach and that the root causes must be addressed.
President Tinubu emphasized that while seeking to address the root causes of terrorism, Africa must also attack the roots that feed this evil branch — ransom and illegal mining — as terrorism evolves and perfects ways to continuously finance, re-equip, and re-supply itself for its sinister mission.
“Not only does it kidnap people, it kidnaps precious resources. Billions upon billions of dollars that legitimate governments should be using to sculpt better societies by providing education, healthcare, and food for its people now go to pay for weapons and response to mayhem.
“Look at the illegal mining that plagues so many of our nations today. Those who think illegal mining has no connection with financing terrorism are sorely mistaken. The international community has both the moral and legal obligation to help in this cause because it is external finance, not African money, that fuels these illegal operations. We shall be knocking on this door of the international community to answer this call for justice, peace, and fair play.
organized crime, foreign terrorist financing and training, poverty, inequality, prolonged conflicts, among others.
He said Nigeria is dealing decisively with all drivers of violent extremism, including economic and social enablers, while enhancing intelligence gathering through enhanced inter-agency collaboration and confidence building with citizens.
He also said Nigeria is strengthening its judiciary to effectively deal with cases of terrorism and has earmarked a fund to boost counter-terrorism efforts.
“We have resumed the prosecution of Boko Haram suspects across the country,” the National Security Adviser said.
In her remarks, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ms. Amina Mohammed suggested that one of the ways to remove the engenderers of terrorism on the continent is for Africa to work to rebuild its social contract with its citizens, and deliver good governance.
“Rebuilding the social contract is necessary for recovery.
“We must pay attention to women and girls who are greatly impacted by terrorism, including the youth. Providing support and healing for those impacted by terrorism is important,” the UN Deputy Secretary-General said.
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, commended Nigeria for its leadership in counter-terrorism in Africa and for hosting the meeting.
“Terrorism is a threat to peace and security, particularly in Africa where its impact is mostly felt. The success of UNOCT in Africa hinges on its support for Africa-led programmes and solutions,” the UNOCT Under-Secretary-General said.
+ There are no comments
Add yours