Some security and defence experts have hailed the Nigerian military for the renewed onslaught against terrorists in the North West and recent killing of a terrorist kingpin, Halilu Sububu (a.k.a Kachalla).
They attributed recent successes to the recent operational visit to the zone by the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle and the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa.
They told Newsmen in an interview in Abuja that the visit demonstrated the commitment and determination of the government to end the menace of insurgency in the country.
Dr Sani Abubakar, an Expert in Military Studies, said that the leadership provided by Matawalle in recent time had justified his appointment to the position being a former governor of Zamfara.
According to him, minister Matawalle is a key player in this crisis in Zamfara being the immediate chief security officer of the state.
“He has local human intelligence asset that can feed him with reliable intelligence which is needed by the troops to effectively execute their task.
“So the presence of the minister and the CDS made impact on the on-going operations, and I will plead with them to make more of such visits,’’ he said.
Abubakar urged the service chiefs and Inspector-General of Police to become regular guests in the North West theatre of operations, saying that great military leaders did that in the past.
He said that they should always visit their troops in the war front to provide transformational leadership.
“No real military chief who knows his worth will sit in Abuja and lackadaisically watch Turji and Co kill Nigerians, destroy expensive military assets and display such on social media,’’ he added.
On his part, Dr Abdullahi Jabi, Secretary-General, International Institute of Professional Security (IIPS), said the recent onslaught had sent panic to the midst of the terrorists in the North West.
Jabi said the terrorists now see the battle taking closer to their doorstep now, adding that it is either they surrender willingly or pay the price.
According to him, the adversaries now know that the Nigerian forces have more equipment now to deal with the situation.
“More so that the leadership of defence is in the war, it is fight to finish.
“I think this is the first time we have seen a government that is serious about handling insurgency and insecurity in the northern region as a whole.
“We need to see more actions until the idiot kingpin, Bello Turji, is brought to book.
“They should not only kill Bello Turji, they should bring him for celebration at the time they get close to him and execute him.
“They now know it is no longer business as usual again,’’ he said.
Jabi said the Nigerian government had made progress in the use of technology in tackling insecurity and other strategic efforts.
He said that the issue of farmer-header clashes were currently being with the creation of livestock ministry solely dedicated to handle the demands of livestock rearing.
