Former Chief of Defense Staff, retired General Martin Luther Agwai says insecurity is on the rise and will continue in Nigeria, as long as institutional lapses are created and allowed to drive insecurity in the country.
Speaking at a 2-day capacity building for traditional rulers on community grievance management organised by the Middle Belt Brain Trust (MBBT) in conjunction with the Institute for Integrated Transition (IFIT) in Lafia, General Agwai explained that factors fueling insecurity in the country were more complex as being portrayed.
According to the former CDS, challenges that triggered insecurity in the Middle Belt and Nigeria at large are enormous and complex noting that the failure of existing institutions to manage grievances was the major conflict driver.
He stated “low compliance rates of court judgments and the high cost of enforcement actions underscore the need for systems that maximize the likelihood of voluntary compliance and the importance of supportive cultural norms that emphasize conciliatory dispute resolution techniques.”
However, he explained that improving grievance management capacities at the community level would translate into timely resolution of disputes and prevent them from becoming identity conflicts.
“Most community-level conflicts that erupted as civil disputes, escalated to violence and identity conflicts adding that various engagements sessions, outreaches and dialogues with key stakeholders have been held that have culminated in the convening of the first Nasarawa Stakeholders’.
“The challenges we have observed are enormous but we believe that with sustained determination and hardwork, the goals of lasting peace and security can be achieved. This is mainly due to the fact that the justice system is overstretched and perceived bias on both the law-making and law-enforcement bodies”, CDS stated
He said the effort if properly explored would strengthen informally existing systems as well as prepare community leaders, increase civic engagement, and help to create public processes that would trigger, stimulate and facilitate broader social and structural changes.
