The Abdulsalami Abubakar Institute for Peace and Sustainable Development has urged the Federal Government to recruit adequate security personnel, trained and equipped to ensure peace in the country.
This is contained in a communique on Tuesday in Minna signed by Dr Preye Nebechukwu, Director of the Institute after a two day stakeholders Roundtable.
The Communique was read by Brig. Gen. Anthony Ukpo (rtd), former military governor of River state and Coordinator of the communique drafting committee.
Ukpo said that a complex, multi-faceted crisis, such as the one currently confronting the country requires careful though-out solutions on short, medium and long term basis.
“The role of the military should be limited to defending Nigeria and not doing police job as witnessed all over the country.
“The police and related para-military should be better trained and equipped to play their traditional roles.
“Nigeria needs to accelerate the process of recruitment of additional security personnel, especially the police, which is inadequate for even normal policing work,” he said.
He said that over reliance on the military in management of conflict often ignore the importance of dialogue and other non-coercive approaches to conflict resolution or management.
He called on leaders at all levels to engage citizens including traditional rulers in tackling the root causes of insecurity.
The Coordinator advised the Federal and State Governments to ensure clear separation between religious and state matters as stipulated in the 1999 constitution.
He also enjoined the two arms of government to adhere to the rule of law in addressing issues of religion and security.
Ukpo advised that all actors engaged in crop farming and livestock production should continually be enlightened to migrate from traditional to modern agricultural techniques.
He said that the federal government should establish a National Mediation Council while the state governments establish Harmony and Mediation Centres to foster peaceful co-existence and inter-group harmony.
The Coordinator said that all tiers of government should create enabling environment for job creation to engage the teeming youths.
Ukpo said that every part of the country was bedeviled by one form of extremist violence or the other.
“The causes of the insecurity include poverty arising from the economic crisis in the country and bellicose political activities, environmental problem in the far North.
“Also the rising perception of injustice by ethnic and religious groups which are escalated by fake news and hate speeches,” he said.
The Coordinator said that the meeting was convened by the institute owing to the escalating tension and insecurity across the country.
