CDS Charges Security Forces ToEliminate Criminal Elements In Sahel

Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, has charged the nation’s security forces to identify and neutralise criminal elements threatening peace in the country and across the wider Sahel region.

The CDS, who spoke as Guest of Honour at the closing ceremony of Exercise Haske Biyu, a joint security training organised by the Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC), Jaji, said removing those criminal elements is the only way for Nigeria and the Sahel to enjoy peace.

He warned that insurgency, terrorism and banditry remain serious threats not only to Nigeria but to the entire Sahel belt, stressing that armed groups exploit porous borders to operate freely across countries.

“At the end of the day, the only thing we must do is to look for the bad guys and take them out. That is the only way we can have peace,” the Defence Chief said.

Musa insisted that no single nation can contain the menace in isolation, urging regional cooperation as the surest path to stability.

“If we hold on to our borders alone, we will continue to suffer. But if we unite and work across, it makes it better,” he explained, citing the Multinational Joint Task Force in Chad as an example of how neighbouring countries can combine efforts to root out insurgents.

The Defence Chief also linked successful operations to robust community engagement.

He emphasised that without the cooperation of citizens, armed groups would continue to find shelter, saying “once communities deny these elements the ability to stay, they will not be able to stand.”

Musa urged Nigerians to see security as a collective responsibility, not just the duty of soldiers and police, adding that public support is indispensable for long-term peace.

He equally stressed the importance of civil-military relations, charging security personnel to conduct themselves professionally, avoid corruption, and resist partisan influence that could compromise operations.

“The only thing we must do is to look for the bad guys and take them out,” he noted, warning that money and politics could undermine hard-fought gains against violent groups.

Musa also praised the media for its role in shaping public perception of military operations.

“When perception is wrong, anything you are doing will be perceived as being wrong. So the media is critical,” he said.

He thanked journalists for what he described as “sustained, constructive coverage” of the armed forces’ counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency campaigns, urging them to continue to educate Nigerians on the objectives and progress of operations.

The CDS tasked participants of Exercise Haske Biyu to convert the training’s lessons into concrete results in their formations.

He said: “This training must not end here. It should be solution-driven. The relentless pursuit of criminals in cooperation with our neighbours, communities and the media is the surest route to lasting peace.”

Earlier, the Commandant of AFCSC, Air Vice Marshal Hassan Idris Alhaji, said Haske Biyu 2025 was the largest exercise organised by the college in recent years.

He explained that the theme, Family and National Security, was deliberately chosen to reconnect social cohesion with national defence.

According to him, weak family structures and fractured communities provide fertile ground for radicalisation and criminality, which in turn fuel insecurity.

“Security is not just about weapons and uniforms. When families collapse and communities disintegrate, criminal elements step in to exploit the vacuum,” the Commandant said.

He urged the participants to translate the lessons learned during the exercise into community-focused action when they return to their various formations.