As President Tinubu returns to face domestic problems like insecurity, inflation, the minimum wage dilemma, power shortages and infrastructural inadequacies, I hope he realises no nation can be secure unless it manufacturers its own defence equipment

Ayo Akinfe

[1] I hope that President Tinubu has making Nigeria self-reliant when it comes to defence equipment one of his cardinal programmes. There is no way any other nation will be able to manufacture the equipment we want, in the quantities we want, at the time we want it and at the price we can afford

[2] If we want to eliminate all these current insecurity problems including Boko Haram, kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, etc, we need an internal armament manufacturing industry can respond to requests from the security forces for equipment. If for instance the Nigeria Police Force 12 helicopter gunships to combat bandits operating in the forests of Zamfara State, we need to be able to deliver them within a fortnight

[3] Any such programme needs to be part of a wider security plan that includes other ambitious goals. It should for instance include a plan that as from January 1 2024, Nigeria shall launch a fourth military service known as the National Guard or Republican Guard that will be tasked solely with dealing with internal security. It will have an army, naval and air component and be charged with dealing with terrorism, kidnapping, banditry, etc

[4] Also, as part of a plan to check our porous borders, the Nigerian Army shall undertake a five year programme to plant trees along our borders to demarcate the nation's boundaries. Such trees shall be painted in the country's colours

[5] Nigeria's maritime borders will also be marked out with cones right along our 853km Atlantic seaboard. A fifth military service will be created called the Nigerian Coast Guard. Its job will be solely to police our maritime borders, which will include combatted crude oil theft

[6] All members of the armed forces will be registered for a national compensation programme that will pay their dependents their full salaries and grant their children scholarships up to university level should they lose their lives during the course of duty

[7] Each state capital shall house at least one mechanised division of the Nigerian Army. Every one of our 784 local government areas shall also have one battalion

[8] Nigeria’s federal ministries of defence, police affairs and internal affairs shall have a coordinating minister for security. It shall then be overseen by the office of the vice president in what will be the Super Security Ministry, which will have overall responsibility for combating terrorism

[9] New laws will be passed as from January 2024 under which members of the security forces aiding and abetting terrorism will face statutory treason charges with the mandatory death penalty being the maximum punishment. Also, military commanders convicted of embezzling funds meant for defence will face statutory treason charges with the accompanying mandatory death penalty being the maximum punishment

[10] Nigeria will enter into bilateral defence agreements with friendly nations aimed at getting their equipment manufacturers to establish factories in the country. As part of this, specialist units of the armed forces like the engineering corps of the Nigerian Army will be free to bid for government contracts in their areas of expertise. This will enable them to develop infrastructure in insecure areas