President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said he has appointed Northerners into major defence positions because of their knowledge of the region.
“Our first decision was to task our brothers from the Northwest and the Northeast to rise in defence of the security of the region.
“Who else can better understand the complexity of the region than the people themselves,’’ he said.
President Tinubu spoke at the opening of a two-day United Nations Development Programme( UNDP)-sponsored Northwest Peace and Security Summit in Katsina.
He was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Some Northerners holding sensitive security posts are Minister of Defence Abubakar Badaru; Minister of Defence (State) Bello Matawale; National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu; Chief of Defence Staff (COAS) General Christopher Musa and Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar.
For insecurity in the North to abate, people of the region must rise in unison against terrorists and other criminal elements that have for over a decade denied them peace, President Tinubu said.
This position was supported by the Sultan of Sokoto Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III.
They stated that doing so would complement the strategies adopted by the government and the Armed Forces to restore peace in the region hitherto known for its tranquillity and cohesion.
The theme of the summit graced by eminent personalities like former President Muhammadu Buhari, four of the seven Northwest governors, and Defence Minister Mohammed Badaru, is: “Regional cooperation for securing lives and livelihoods in Northwest Nigeria.’’
President Tinubu said even though the various strategies adopted by his administration to tackle the security challenges in the North were yielding results, the people needed to complement the success.
