Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, August 02, 2003
Nigeria Faces Increasing Security Threat: President
Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that there has been increasing threat to national security in spite of government intention to improve the lot of Nigerians.
Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that there has been increasing threat to national security in spite of government intention to improve the lot of Nigerians.
Obasanjo made the remarks Friday at the graduation of participants of Course 11 of the National War College in the capital Abuja.
He said heightened insecurity across the country was evident inform of crime, politically motivated violence, and conflicts between ethnic nationalities and religious groups.
He called on political, religious and ethnic leaders to preach peace and harmony to their followers.
"If leaders will rise to their duties to explain to the youth that violence never solves any problem, they would be protecting national security by far more than any army or the police can do,"he said
According to Obasanjo, Nigerians also had a role to play and that if they took their responsibilities seriously, it would go along way to reduce crime, corruption and inter-communal conflictswhich would in turn guarantee national security.
On external conflicts, Obasanjo said the current conflicts in Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire had the potential of destabilizing the entire West African sub-region.