THE Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has said the fight against terrorism, banditry and insurgency in Nigeria remains difficult because criminal groups continue to receive support from their sponsors and some members of the public.
News Point Nigeria reports that Musa stated that terrorists and bandits rely heavily on local collaborators for food, information, logistics and funding, warning that insecurity would remain difficult to defeat unless citizens reject and expose those aiding criminal elements.
The Defence Minister spoke on Friday at the 2026 edition of The Platform Nigeria, an annual national discourse organised to mark Democracy Day. The event, monitored by our correspondent on Channels Television, was hosted by the Senior Pastor and Founder of The Covenant Nation, Poju Oyemade.
Addressing participants on the theme, “Governance, Democracy and National Security,” Musa stressed that meaningful progress against insecurity can only be achieved when Nigerians actively support security agencies and refuse to provide assistance to criminal elements.
According to him, the battle against terrorism, insurgency and banditry is complicated by the fact that many of those sustaining the criminals operate from within communities.
“Everything revolves around the people. If the people are ready and willing to make changes, changes will occur. If the people are not willing, nothing will happen,” he said.
“I can tell you that with what is going on with the challenges we have in the country — banditry, insurgency and terrorism — why does it seem so difficult to deal with them? Perhaps, we have people who are also encouraging and supporting these things because the terrorists and bandits survive among the people.”
The minister said security agencies have encountered numerous cases where individuals aided criminal groups by supplying food, water and intelligence, thereby helping them sustain their operations.
“There are several stories of how people have aided them by giving them food, water and information, and these are the things that keep them going. We call this the oxygen. Who are those funding them? Who are those giving them information? Who are those providing the logistics that keep them going? It is still the people,” Musa said.
The Defence Minister noted that modern security threats differ significantly from conventional warfare because the enemy often operates from within the same communities security agencies are tasked with protecting.
“Conventional warfare in the past used to be 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. That individual whom you are protecting may be the number one enemy trying to take you out immediately he gets the chance,” he stated.
Musa maintained that regardless of the sacrifices made by the armed forces and other security agencies, their efforts would continue to face limitations without the active cooperation of citizens.
“It is important for us to always remember that the armed forces and the security agencies, no matter what they do, if the people are not ready to support them, it makes the task extremely difficult,” he added.
The minister also urged Nigerians to remain united, warning that terrorists and other criminal groups often exploit existing divisions within society to advance their activities and weaken national cohesion.
“We must continue to work in unity because it is these gaps that exist between us that these individuals see and try to widen in order to separate and divide us, and we must not let that happen,” Musa said.
Also speaking at the event, former President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, underscored the importance of an independent legislature in sustaining democracy and promoting accountability in governance.
Saraki argued that a parliament that merely endorses executive proposals without proper scrutiny fails in its constitutional role and weakens democratic institutions.
“A legislature that cannot say no is not a legislature at all. A legislature that simply receives executive proposals, approves them without scrutiny and goes home has not fulfilled its constitutional mandate. It has merely performed a ceremonial function,” he said.
The former Senate President further maintained that legislative independence should not be interpreted as opposition to the executive arm of government but rather as a necessary safeguard for democratic legitimacy.
“The independence of the National Assembly is not rebellion against the government of the day. If the National Assembly is independent, it is the very thing that makes the government legitimate because a mandate that is never tested is a mandate that no one can trust,” Saraki said.