The Federal Government has stated that the Bola Tinubu administration is executing a multi-faceted strategy to combat terrorism, integrating military, socio-economic, and diplomatic initiatives.

Dele Alake, the Special Adviser to the President, made this assertion during a news conference hosted by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, on Wednesday in Abuja.

Alake emphasized that Nigeria’s security challenges are a long-standing issue. “The insecurity in Nigeria did not start under President Tinubu or two years ago,” he stated.

He defended the administration’s approach, arguing that the proactive measures taken by the current government are unprecedented. “From the plenitude of actions taken, if such was taken ten years ago, we probably would not be where we are today,” Alake said.

A Reinvigorated Security Architecture

Highlighting key actions, Alake pointed to the recent overhaul of the nation’s security leadership. “The change in 2023, and again a few days ago; all these are to reinvigorate and re-inject new enthusiasm and impetus into the fight against insecurity,” he explained.

He assured Nigerians that these decisions are not arbitrary but are the result of “deep exhaustive planning and strategising,” and are already yielding positive results.

Call for Responsible Media Reporting

Addressing the narrative around terrorist attacks, Alake refuted claims that they are religiously motivated. He clarified that terrorism is driven by economic or political motives, not faith.

“Ironically, some of those communities are inhabited by people of a particular religion,” he said. “To use the faith of the inhabitants to explain the motive of the attack is very wrong and does not reflect the reality on the ground.”

He concluded by urging the media to move away from propagating what he called a “wrong narrative” and to instead amplify the successes of the armed forces in the fight against terrorism.