Civilian JTF seeks FG support, says it can wipe out bandits in one year

Kailani Muhammad, national chairman of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), says the group can “crush bandits” within one year if the federal government provides advanced technology and operational support.

NAN reports that Muhammad spoke on Saturday in Abuja when Charles Omini, special envoy and ambassador to West Africa for the International Human Rights Protection Service/Forum, presented him with a certificate of partnership as chairman of the West African JTF.

He said CJTF operatives have intelligence on the hideouts of criminal groups across affected states, but lack the equipment required to act decisively.

Muhammad urged President Bola Tinubu to issue a one-year timeline to all service chiefs, in collaboration with the CJTF, to eliminate insecurity nationwide.

“If actually we mean business, we know, even in the states where all these things are happening, we know their locations, we know where they are,” he said.

“We are calling on Mr President to give all the security chiefs a timeline of one year. They should sign an undertaking, and in the next one year, in collaboration, they will work with us to make sure that we wipe out insecurity in Nigeria.

“If they don’t do it, they should resign. They will bring some group to come and do the job. They should not just leave them like that. They should put them on their toes.”

The CJTF chairman also asked the federal government to equip the group with advanced surveillance systems and border-control tools, including CCTV coverage and artificial intelligence technologies.

He said the country’s borders remain porous, adding that the group has identified “about 2,000 inlets and exit routes” used by armed groups.

“If the government can help us, we need to put CCTV as it’s obtained in Mexico now and America,” Muhammad said.

“So, these should be positioned 100 kilometres where you see the influx of these hoodlums, all these bandits coming, through intelligence. We have AI now.”

Speaking at the event, Omini stressed the need for a systematic and technology-driven approach to security, saying no single agency can address Nigeria’s complex challenges alone.

He called for deeper collaboration among security operatives and more dialogue with communities to discourage violence.

“I call on the security heads at all levels to come up with very strong strategic collaborations and partnerships with the relevant agencies and organisations,” he said.

“We’re in a global and digital world. I appeal to security agencies to engage more of advanced technology to combat these challenges.

“If different security agencies at all levels will come up with these approaches technologically, I think we should be able to solve security challenges confronting Nigeria.

“Another thing we have to do as a country is dialogue. We need to talk to our people. We need to know that if you destroy one, you are destroying everybody and you are destroying yourself.

“Those who are carrying arms, who are kidnapping, for how long are they going to do this? We are appealing to them, they are destroying our economy and our government. So these killings and kidnapping must stop.

“Enough is enough and it is not something that government will do alone. There has to be strategic collaborations at all levels to make sure we wipe insecurity out of Nigeria.”