The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has said the insecurity bedevilling the North West region of the country was being made worse by criminal elements involved in illegal mining, banditry, and cattle rustling, among others.

He added that their continuous activities had led to the destruction of life and means of livelihoods.

Lagbaja, represented by the Nigerian Army Chief of Operations, Major General Benson Sijen, spoke at the opening of a three-day retreat for retired and serving commanders in the Northwest, held in Abuja on Monday.

He lamented that despite the Army’s efforts to curb their activities, they continue to impact the Northwest and the country as a whole.

Lagbaja said, “The current security challenges the nation is facing are volatile, complex and fluid and vary from one zone to another. In the Northwest, the security situation is made complex and persistent by activities of non-state actors who engage in banditry, kidnapping, cattle rustling, illegal mining, and violent attacks leading to the destruction of life and means of livelihoods.

“The activities of these non-state actors have continued to impact the security environment in the Northwest region and, by extension, in our country despite efforts to curb the trend by the Nigerian army, sister services, and other government departments and agencies.”

Lagbaja noted that to rid the North West region of insecurity, the army must review the situation and ensure they are ahead of the criminals.

He said, “Surmounting insecurity in the North West region needs a periodic review of the situation, which in turn will allow us to truly understand the generality and specifics for seamless planning and executing of operations. The threats, as I mentioned, are always fluid and evolving, thus requiring us to quickly adapt, for us to be at least a step ahead of the adversary. This retreat has provided a unique opportunity for us to review the situation in the North West by brainstorming for the next three days to arrive at potent solutions.”

The Director General, Nigerian Army Resource Center, Maj. Gen. Garba Wahab (retd.) said though the military can’t solve all the problems, it should provide the enabling environment for other political focus.

He said, “As I mentioned, the military cannot solve the issue completely, but it should provide an enabling environment for other political focus. And that’s the essence of why we are running the three-day retreat of past commanders and present troops who have served in the north-western geopolitical zone.

“For them to come up with the issues, operationally, logistical-wise, administrative-wise, and then their relationship with others so that we can find truth and find out, improving on what is happening right now.”