Precious Obogo
| The military is about deploying Joint Task Force, code-named Operation Savannah Shield, to hit banditry and other criminal activities terrorising parts of Kwara and Niger states. |
| The Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, made the disclosure during a House of Representatives budget defence session with the Minister of Defence and Service Chiefs. |
| General Oluyede called for the urgent strengthening of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to consolidate gains recorded by the Armed Forces in the fight against insurgency and banditry across the country. |
| He noted that the Police and Civil Defence, which have larger personnel strength and wider community reach than the Armed Forces, must be adequately equipped to take over and secure areas already cleared of criminal elements by the military. |
| Providing an overview of the nation’s security situation, Oluyede said arrangements had been concluded to deploy Special Forces to Kwara State and parts of Niger State to address the recent surge in insecurity. He stressed, however, that the Armed Forces alone could not resolve the challenges. |
| He revealed that Special Forces have also been deployed to Benue and Plateau states, while the new Joint Task Force, Operation Savannah Shield, will soon be inaugurated to specifically cover Kwara State and parts of Niger State. |
| Earlier, Chairman of the House Committee on Defence, Mr Babajimi Benson, said Nigeria’s contemporary security challenges could not be addressed through kinetic approaches alone. |
| While acknowledging the gains made by the Armed Forces and other security agencies, Mr Benson stressed that sustainable peace requires complementary non-kinetic strategies. |
| He added that persistent security threats underscore the need for deeper institutional reforms, improved inter-agency coordination, and smarter deployment of scarce resources. |