CSO backs Tinubu’s 90-day threat assessment, five-year defence plan to tackle insecurity
Coalition of Patriots for Security Sector Reforms (CPSSR), a civil society organisation, has welcomed President Bola Tinubu’s directive for the preparation of a national threat assessment and a rolling five-year strategic defence operations plan.
In a statement issued on Monday and signed by Salisu Attah, its national coordinator, the coalition said the 90-day timeline should be used to consolidate existing security frameworks into a practical operational plan that improves coordination, resource allocation and effectiveness across Nigeria’s security architecture.
The group also urged the government to ensure the initiative produces measurable security improvements rather than another strategy document.
Tinubu had directed an 11-member committee to prepare the national threat assessment and strategic defence operations plan within 90 days.
The assessment is expected to identify Nigeria’s principal security threats and their urgency, while the defence plan will set operational priorities, identify capability and equipment gaps and provide an implementation timetable.
CPSSR welcomed the appointment of Adeyinka Famadewa, a retired major general and special adviser to the president on homeland security, to coordinate the committee.
The coalition described Famadewa as suitably positioned for the role, citing his military, intelligence and strategic security experience.
“Major General Adeyinka Famadewa brings to this assignment a combination of military, intelligence and strategic security experience that is relevant to the task before the committee,” the group said.
It said his responsibility to coordinate the process and provide secretariat support should not be viewed as duplicating the roles of the national security adviser or service chiefs.
Rather, the group said, the arrangement would provide a dedicated coordination mechanism to ensure that the committee’s work was coherent, properly documented and completed within the 90-day timeframe.
CPSSR noted that Famadewa had more than three decades of military and intelligence experience spanning national security strategy, intelligence fusion, counter-terrorism operations and international security diplomacy.
The coalition also cited his previous articulation of homeland-security priorities, including unified surveillance, identity management, border security and stronger early-warning and crisis-response mechanisms.
DON’T DISCARD EXISTING STRATEGIES’
CPSSR rejected suggestions that the new initiative would render existing security strategies irrelevant. It said the focus should instead be on improving coherence among existing policies and operational frameworks.
“The objective is not to discard what already exists, but to bring greater clarity to how existing strategies, institutions, capabilities and resources fit together,” Attah said.
He said the national threat assessment would provide an updated picture of Nigeria’s security threats, while the strategic defence operations plan would translate the assessment into prioritised military and defence requirements.
“This is a necessary link between strategy, operations, capability and funding,” he said.
The coalition also noted that the presidential directive allows the committee to consult or co-opt representatives of other ministries, departments and agencies where their expertise or participation is required.
It said the provision was important because Nigeria’s security challenges cut across military, intelligence, policing, border management, infrastructure and civilian institutions.
CPSSR welcomed the decision to link the proposed plan to a multi-year defence expenditure and procurement framework.
The coalition said the approach could help prevent fragmented spending and ensure scarce resources were directed towards clearly identified national security priorities.
“The real test of this initiative will not be the quality of the document produced after 90 days, but whether its recommendations are implemented, funded and subjected to measurable accountability,” Attah said.
“Nigeria needs security planning that survives individual operations, budget cycles and institutional changes.”