Nation
Self-Defence: Minister Calling For Pure Anarchy, Ex-DSS Director Warns
A former Director of the Department of State Services, Mike Ejiofor, says the Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd), was calling for “pure anarchy” with his recent comment that Nigerians should defend themselves amid the security challenges in the country.
Ejiofor spoke, yesterday while fielding questions from newsmen in Abuja.
The minister had last Wednesday said, “It is the responsibility of everybody to keep alert and to find safety when necessary. But we shouldn’t be cowards.
“At times, the bandits will only come with about three rounds of ammunition, when they fire shots everybody runs. In our younger days, we stand to fight any aggression coming for us.”
But reacting, Ejiofor stressed that the citizens have already surrendered their rights to defend themselves to the government and the government has the constitutional responsibility to ensure the security of lives and properties in Nigeria.
He said, “I want to believe that the minister of defence didn’t mean what he said. Perhaps, it was a slip of (the) tongue because what he is calling for is pure anarchy.
“Government’s responsibility is to protect lives and properties. It is a social contract that we have now surrendered our rights to government to protect.
“Somebody saying people should start defending themselves is an admission of complete failure of government. Such statement should be coming from non-society organisations and definitely not government functionaries.”
The security expert also said criminal elements attacking farmers and residents of host communities are not herders but militias who go about wielding sophisticated weapons.
He lamented the proliferation of fire arms in Nigeria, saying the arms in Nigeria are more than all the ammunition in West Africa.
Ejiofor also called for the liberalisation of fire arms in the country.
The former DSS director further said the Nigeria Police Force lacked the manpower and resources to effectively combat crimes.
He, therefore, urged state governments to protect lives through peculiar security outfits like the Amotekun Corps, amongst others.
The Alliance Française Port Harcourt in conjunction with the Embassy of France Nigeria over the weekend joined the globe to campaign against the 2025 gender- based violence (GBV) with the theme: “16 Days of Activism Against Gender- Based Voice”
The event which took place at the event Hall of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt was in collaboration with the Female in Gaming Network, ( FIGN) and partnership with Nexal a body that seeks to promote online safety and responsible digital behaviour.
The Tide reports that the project which was aimed at promoting digital safety and girls inclusion in Gaming, with the initiative tagged ‘Gameover Gender- Base Violence’was part of the global campaign against gender- based Violence.
The activity which experienced a flavour of festivity was full of fun and excitements as participants took part in tournaments on popular digital games such as Mario kart and EAFC 25, with an intent to creating safer and more inclusive digital spaces.
The Director of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt, Mrs Marina Lacal said that these activities were designed to encourage inclusion of girls, team work and fair play on online gaming spaces, saying that the gaming world reflects these inequalities, where female players are often under represented.
According to her the main objectives of the initiative was to provide a supportive environment for girls and female in gaming network.
“GameOverGBV” is a project created to reshape this landscape by offering an innovative inclusiveness of girls on online digital Gaming community and digital environments that provide opportunities for creativity, learning and connection, but also fight against Gender-Based Violence Digital Gaming,”she said
She however, explained that the Digital Game, sport competitions, was launched to strengthen social and digital skills through games, workshops, and raise awareness among all young participants about respect, equality and digital citizenship.
The Tide News reports that in Port Harcourt, the competition brought together 100 young participants from three major universities: University of Port Harcourt, ( UNIPORT),Ignatius Ajuru University of Education(IAUE) and Rivers State University (RSU)as well as students from four selected secondary schools, Oginigba comprehensive Secondary.School, Vine lnternational, Virgo predicanda lnternational, and Excellent Montessori Secondary school.
“This is an approach where girls and boys can learn, play and collaborate in a more respectful and safe space for young women, while ensuring a safe, enjoyable and respectful digital environment. It also expose young women to cyberbullying, exclusion, sexist comments and online hate,” Mrs. Lacal said.
Earlier, a game developer Sophia Nei and her. team had engaged participants in an interactive session with the theme: “Can Video Games Be Safe Spaces For Girls?”
However, Mrs Nei and her team educated the girls on the benefits and violence on online digital gaming and urged them ( participants)to learn to say ‘No’ to Online hate, sexist and cyber bullying, while encouraging them(students) to stand up for themselves by reporting such issues to the appropriate authority.
Highlight of the competition was the awarding of prizes to winners by the Director of Alliance Française, Mrs Marina Lacal.
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