An economist and and a security expert, Dr. Sunny Joseph Moneke, in this interview with SHUAIB SHUAIB, shares his views on the current security concerns of the nation and the need to restructure the security agencies to contain the challenges ahead.
Terrorism in Nigeria has assumed new dimensions in recent months. What does this mean for the country?
I think its dimensions are still local, in the sense that their activities and their motives are localised. On the other hand, I also think that some of the incidents we have had in the past had the insignia of some other terror fraternities outside Nigeria, due to the series of arrests we have had in some of the terrorist camps involving Nigerians. So, I think it is a combination of both. ?
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The attention of everyone has turned to our security agencies. The government has said it intends? to better equip them and modernise the agencies. Other than equipping them, there are calls for the restructuring of the entire security network which has not happened since Gen. Babangida created the State Security Service (SSS), National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA).
What do think this government can do?
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There is an overhauling of the security that is going on and I think the government is moving in the right direction. Recently, the? Center for Terrorism, CT, was established under the office of the National Security Agency (NSA). The person who was in charge of that place was Brigadier General Waya. Recently too, there was a change of baton; a new man, Major General Sarkin Bello, took over from him but he was now named coordinator instead of director of the CT. So, I think that restructuring of some sort is going on. Besides, there are some other things that the NSA have? done, that are indicators of the fact that the security organisations are being overhauled.
We cannot say what will happen, but perhaps, the coming weeks will reveal what is going on. I think there are changes about to take place in a number of sectors and all that is in the right direction for now. ?
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It has been suggested that both the SSS and the NIA be removed from the presidency and put under a ministry just like the Defense Intelligence Agency. Do you think this will be a more appropriate organisational structure?
I? would not be able to say much about that, but whichever area they find themselves, that is not what is important; the important thing is efficiency. even if they are put under a ministry, once it is efficiently managed by credible, that is the most important thing. For now, I think the security organisations should know what to do. Some of these are being done, but discreetly.
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The efficiency of the security organisations have come under scrutiny recently,because of documented links between the Boko Haram? and the Al Qaeda, with most of the information coming from the United States’ government. Is it a sign of failure on the part of the NIA, considering that it is the organisation responsible for gathering intelligence outside Nigeria. Should the government take a second look at how it operations?
Let me point out something. Intelligence, like I have always said, is a complimentary issue. It is not something that is absolute in any country. The highest consumer of intelligence in the whole world is Israel, yet Israel also gets minute intelligence from other countries of the world. I think that it is not correct for the Americans to actually supply intelligence to the effect that the Al Qaeda has links to the goings-on in Nigeria.
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The Nigerian intelligence service had said something insinuating that in the past. I am also aware of the fact that one or two agencies suggested same, besides what the Americans are saying. So, they have not failed. What I will say is that people are in a hurry to judge them. I have always said that the enemy we are dealing with is a new enemy, not the conventional enemy. Therefore, this is not a conventional war. It is an enemy that suddenly emerged in our society. On the other hand, these guys are also trying to adjust their parameters and their programmes to suit the sophistication in the sector.
We have a good intelligence network that can challenge every other intelligence networks all over the world. ?
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The current happenings might cause the government to over-react by increasing the budgetary allocation to security issues and with assistance coming from the US to fight terrorism, should there be a limit to what Nigeria accepts from other countries,considering that it could influence her policies?
Well, as far as budget is concerned, if you check the last budgetary allocation, intelligence has not been neglected at all. The budget is always okay, a bit rosy for that sector. As far as I am concerned, the last budget actually took care of that, so, the intelligence community in Nigeria has never been starved of funds. Like I said, we are not depending on either American intelligence budget or allocation, so the issue of influencing there policies does not even arise. Policies concerning intelligence are meant to be contained within a country and if they are making decisions on that, they have to take a lot of things into consideration what is local, what is not and then the culture of the people, and the kind of battle you are fighting.
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The kind of battle America is fighting in the area of counter-terrorism is not the same with that of Nigeria, which is an internal. America is fighting international terrorism, while we are fighting one that is just within us, just like what is going on in Pakistan. That is the way I see it. ?
There are contradicting issues about the body in charge of investigations concerning the bombing of the UN building in Abuja. The United Nations says it is conducting its own independent investigation, President Jonathan has also said he intends to find those responsible. Also, there are reports that the FBI have come to Nigeria to investigate this same incident. Who is actually leading the charge?
It is a global matter, as is anything concerning the United? Nations. There is no country in the world that does not have a victim, directly or indirectly in this incident. This is a collaboration, there should be a collaboration, a collective and communal effort by intelligence organisations and agencies all over the world, so intelligence should be collated and analysed to reveal what really went down.
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In a situation like this, issues of sectoral intelligence should not arise. This is the world and the enemy we are talking about is a global one. It has been said a number of times, in the United Nations, that we are dealing with a common enemy and we should deal with it with a common force. A collective effort should be made.
? The government has been discouraged from using force to stop the Boko Haram. What else can it do?
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There is something called “diplomatic technique” as an instrument of negotiation. You use that first, and when it fails, tougher measures can be applied. As far as I am concerned, we have to apply some of these styles at different stages of negotiation. Let us first handle it with care before applying any form of confrontation or force. I think the government is doing the right thing in the right direction. A panel or committee was set up and they came up with a report which they submitted to the president. That is part of what we are talking about. It is an indirect way of negotiating, because if they had wanted to use force, then the issue of setting up the committee would not even have arisen. I think the government is trying to take their time to make sure they handle it with love before going to any other extent. I think that what they are doing will actually resolve the matter. ?
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Do you see any difference between attacks initiated by the Niger Delta militants and those of the Boko Haram? Are they simply acts of terror?
?In terrorism, there are different reasons and motives, and factors that will always precipitate that. That of the Niger Delta was resource-based: they wanted to be a part of what they felt belonged to them.? In the case of the Boko Haram, I think it is a compounded issue. I look at it from both the religious and political sense, in the sense that the opposition are trying to target the current tenets of power to destabilise the government or make the electorate lose confidence in them. That is the political aspect. Religion is also part of it. They feel that the coming of the military into the north has desecrated on their land. They considered it an incursion which they had to fight.
The other area is economic, in the sense that some of these youths (who are the by-products of elections past) feel that they have been used in the past without being properly rehabilitated, and having been trained in the use of firearms, what can they do? They can only resort to that as the last resort. Having been abandoned, they have to cling to the other part of life, the man-must-wack thing. They are now using the same instrument they were trained for in another way. That actually makes it different from what is going on in the Niger Delta.
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Taking all these factors into account, how do you think the government can stem these acts of terror?
First of all, there is need to get to the roots. In the case of the Niger Delta, they went to the roots and presently, there is relative peace in the region. Let them get to the roots. The issue of callous deprivation, standards of living, religious disharmony, illiteracy and education should be brought up and addressed. Following that, awareness should be created through positive mental incursion.
Penetrating the mentality of these guys positively at primary, secondary and tertiary school levels before they graduate into criminal activities? is very important. That is what I think the government should be doing. Also, there is need for information dissemination; let everyone be aware that there is a new enemy in our midst, one who should be properly handled. We should be aware that it exists.
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There is a heightened sense of security, with a lot of check points in major hotels and government buildings. How long do you think this will go on?
?In terrorism, there is what you call “prone areas”. That is why I said the intelligence agencies are working. They have identified the prone areas and these areas should be guarded once they have been identified, so that, at least, people can frequent them. That is exactly what is going on. The issue of sustenance of such protective services is part of the government’s work, but there is need for sustenance. The tempo should be sustained. It should be part of the social services. You can’t do something for sometime and lapse into a state of relaxed state. It has to continue like that until there is relative peace. Definitely, Nigeria will not continue to be on “red alert”. We will get to the point when these things will reduce and then every institution will be be relaxed. The normal life of Nigerians will continue, but for now, there is need for security to be sustained.