A former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari led government to adopt a carrot and stick approach to end insecurity across the country.
Buratai, who is Nigeria’s ambassador to the Benin Republic, called for dialogue between governments and armed groups, saying a growing practice of engaging in dialogue with all parties to a conflict had emerged since the mid-1980s.
Buratai observed that there must be concerted efforts that there are no ungoverned spaces in the land.
The former Army Chief spoke as a guest lecturer at a one-day symposium on National Security, organised by Arewa House in Kaduna, with the theme ‘Politics and Insecurity in Nigeria: Way Forward,’ which was held in Kaduna on Saturday.
He urged state and local governments to establish their presence in their areas of responsibility.
According to him, negotiation and dialogue are integrated approaches that can end insecurity by involving traditional and religious leaders, media, security and intelligence agencies.
He noted that he aligned with the approach being promoted by a revered Islamic cleric, Sheikh Gumi.
“This is where I commend Sheikh Gumi for his initiative. One-third of the fight is military, others should be non-kinetic, through dialogue. We must get this solution and this is the right time to get it done,” he said.
Buratai further suggested the revitalisation of the Defense Industries Corporation of Nigeria, better welfare and equipment for police, as well as the establishment of a national border force like is done in other parts of the world.
This is just as he also advised the Office of the National Security Adviser to collaborate and employ all means to block off supplies to terrorists.
According to him, the issue of the carrot and stick approach can be used to explore ways to end some of the conflicts confronting Nigeria.