Buhari, Security Heads Hold Council Meeting

– Terrorism, Banditry, Kidnapping On Agenda

The President Muhammadu Buhari and heads of security agencies have begun a meeting of the National Security Council at the State House, Abuja.

Service chiefs sighted arriving for the meeting were the Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen Tukur Buratai; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas; and the Chief of the Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.

Other security heads were the National Security Adviser, Maj.-Gen Babagana Monguno (retd.); Inspector-General of Police, Mr Mohammed Adamu; Director-General, Department of State Services, Yusuf Bichi; and the Director-General, National Intelligence Agency Ahmed Rufai Abubakar.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, and the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, were also sighted on Tuesday.

The Council is the highest executive organ overseeing security matters in the country, with the President presiding. It holds routines meetings.

Security heads, in line with tradition, will brief the council on the security situation in the country as it relates to the agencies they head, the challenges and the efforts being made to address them.

THE WHISTLER gathered that today’s meeting would certainly review the current challenges of insurgency, banditry and kidnapping, which so far had defied solutions.

Highlights of deliberations at the closed-door meeting may be made public later by the security chiefs.