General Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), has emphasised that Nigerian national security cannot be achieved solely through military means.
He contends that political and socioeconomic interventions account for the remaining 70% of what is required to achieve national security, with military action making up only 30% of the total.
General Musa made this statement at the Roundtable Discussion on Nigeria’s Security and National Interest, which was held in Abuja and organised by the Office of the National Security Adviser’s National Counter-Terrorism Centre in cooperation with Defence Correspondents.
When speaking on the topic of “National Security and National Interest: A Development Journalism Approach for the Defence Beat,” the CDS underlined the importance of teamwork in addressing Nigeria’s insecurity.
“The narrative surrounding national security often emerges from a narrow lens in a world full of echoes of conflict, uncertainty, security dilemmas, and ambiguous and complex geopolitical challenges,” he said. The emphasis on national security is frequently distorted and limited to talking about military might and the direct dangers posed by adversarial states and non-state entities. Despite the importance of these viewpoints, we must broaden our perspective on national security to include more comprehensive social, economic, and environmental aspects, which are characteristics of what is known as “development journalism.”
General Musa continued by emphasising the contributions journalists may make to the nation’s increased security.
He pointed out that development journalism, a specialised type of media that focuses on a country’s social, economic, and political development, might support military efforts to protect Nigeria’s sovereignty.
“Adopting a development journalism strategy makes it possible to work with journalists and media outlets more actively, which helps them advance Nigeria’s national interest by fostering national stability and cohesiveness.
“Therefore, Nigeria’s educated, healthy, and socially cohesive population, supported by development journalism, should strengthen our national security instead of depending only on the strength of the Armed Forces of Nigeria,” he added.
