By; AMOS TAUNA, Kaduna
A former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai (rtd) has identified a comprehensive and collaborative approach in order to combat Nigeria’s growing menace of organized crime.
Speaking at a one-day international conference in Abuja on Tuesday, Buratai noted that law enforcement agencies, government bodies, and the public have crucial roles to play in safeguarding the nation’s future.
With the theme, “Organized Crime Network as Emergent Threats to National Security”, organized by Igbinedion University, Okada, in conjunction with the Buratai Centre for Contemporary Security Affairs, the former Army chief lamented that the country had a criminality score of 7.15 out of 10, ranking it second out of 54 countries in Africa and first out of 15 countries in West Africa.
According to him, Nigeria is standing at a critical juncture, ranked 5th out of 193 countries on the Global Organized Crime, GOC, Index, saying that the alarming reality of these crimes, from illicit oil theft to calculated displacement of communities for mining, cannot be swept under the rug.
He further stressed, “These multifaceted crimes not only undermine the stability and well-being of affected regions but also perpetuate a cycle of violence and exploitation.”
He opined that the strain criminal enterprises put on the economy, stunting its growth and development, noted the need for governments, international organizations, and law enforcement agencies to collaborate to address the issues comprehensively.
This, according to him, could be achieved by implementing stringent measures, conducting thorough investigations, and promoting sustainable development initiatives, pointing out that the Index results showed the countries with the highest criminality levels are those experiencing conflict or fragility.
He advised that Nigerians must learn from this and enhance their socio-economic development, border control measures, counter-terrorism efforts, and law enforcement capabilities.
Professor Lawrence Ikechukwu Ezemonye, the Vice Chancellor of Igbinedion University, Okada, stated how insecurity had spread across modern global societies, with Africa, and specifically Nigeria, bearing a significant brunt of it.
According to Ezemonye, the scale of insecurity in Nigeria is heightened by the growing convergence and proliferation of organized criminal activities, banditry, terrorism, human and drug trafficking, kidnapping, among others, stressing that these have put serious strains on the nation’s security architecture.
Ezemonye, despite the situation, expressed hope in addressing these challenges by convening a meeting of security analysts and personnel to deliberate on the issues.
