By Adegboyega Adeleye
Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, has said Nigeria has defeated terrorists to a significant extent, claiming that attacks by terrorist groups are no longer as rampant as they were previously.
Musa stated this while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he assessed the country’s security situation and the changing nature of threats confronting Nigerians.
The minister said while terrorist attacks had reduced, kidnapping had become a more prominent security challenge, describing it as an increasingly social problem.
“Frankly speaking, we have. Because, like I said, the attacks are not as rampant and it is now to kidnapping,” Musa said.
“Kidnapping is now a social ill. Now, you’ve seen wives kidnapping husbands and husbands kidnapping children, so it is a social thing,” he added.
Musa also warned against allowing asymmetric warfare to become entrenched, saying the nature of terrorism makes it different from conventional warfare because it is driven by ideology.
“No country should ever allow asymmetry warfare. Why? We are dealing with ideology. Ideology is not what you can see; it is what a man believes in,” he said.
According to the minister, the ideological dimension of terrorism makes the threat particularly difficult to confront because those involved can be driven by deeply held beliefs.
He explained that extremist groups often present their ideology to followers in a way that makes them believe their actions are justified while portraying everyone outside their belief system as wrong.
“The perception they are told is that every other person is wrong and that they are the only ones doing right,” Musa added.
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