Insurgency is not only military’s war – Buratai

By Enitan Abdultawab

Former Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Tukur Yusuf Buratai (rtd.), said the fight against insurgency in Nigeria will remain incomplete unless citizens recognise that the war is as much theirs as it is the military’s.

Buratai stated this on Saturday at the 18th Annual International Security Conference and Induction Ceremony of the Institute of Security, Nigeria, held at the Faculty of Social Sciences Auditorium Complex, University of Lagos.

Speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the event, the former Army chief stressed that the public often misunderstands the true nature of insurgency, insisting that the threat is embedded within communities and cannot be resolved by military action alone.

“But what most people fail to understand is that insurgency is the people’s war. It’s not only the military in the people’s war,” he said. “You’d be surprised that amongst us here, there may be one or two bandits or Boko Haram members.”

Buratai, who led counter-terrorism operations during the peak of the Boko Haram crisis, also reflected on Nigeria’s security trajectory, saying measurable improvements were made between 2015 and 2021, particularly in recovering territories once controlled by insurgents.

“You know how we built up from 2009 up to 2015, isn’t it? Was there any change between 2015 to probably 2021 or 2024? Was there any improvement? Yeah, you should acknowledge that,” he noted.

“All those roadblocks were removed. All those local governments that were under the Boko Haram terrorist group before 2015 have been recovered. Substantial degrading of Boko Haram was done between 2015 and 2021. The military is still what it used to be – professional.”

In his keynote address titled “Leadership, Strategy, and National Security Management,” Buratai emphasised the critical link between leadership capacity and national security outcomes. Drawing from his book, Thoughts and Principles on Leadership (2022), he argued that strategy alone is insufficient without leaders capable of execution.

“A well-developed strategy is essential, but it is nothing without leaders who can implement it. Leaders at all levels must promote transparency, encourage citizen participation, and be rational enough to anticipate future challenges.”

Buratai noted that government already possesses the necessary legal and operational frameworks to combat terrorism, including the national defence policy, anti-terrorism legislation, and other strategic documents. He, however, stressed the need for a holistic and continuous approach.

“The government has all the documentation, the transcripts, the strategy, the defence policy, and the Anti-Terrorism Prevention Act. They are all there to deal with this situation. But it must be comprehensive, consistent, and sustained. There must be support, training and retraining, and recruitment across the police, military, intelligence agencies, DSS, and others.”

He further highlighted the role of communities and local governance in strengthening national security architecture.

“We must have community resilience and community support. Local government administrations must be empowered. It is really not a one-off solution,” he added.

The conference featured the investiture and induction of distinguished fellows, fellows, professional members, and associate members of the Institute of Security, Nigeria.

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