Defence and Security Experts have identified national security and stability as the most significant contribution of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) to the country’s development since independence.
By Sumaila Ogbaje
The experts, retired Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman and Dr Stephen Okwori, said the military’s contributions also extended to peacekeeping, national unity, emergency response and support to civil authorities.
Speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) ahead of Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary, Usman, a former Director of Army Public Relations, said the impact of the military had been profound and central to Nigeria’s survival, stability, unity and development over the past 66 years.
He said the military’s primary constitutional responsibility remained the defence of Nigeria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and protection of national security.
According to him, the armed forces have repeatedly placed their lives on the line during the Civil War, counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations, as well as operations against banditry, kidnapping and other security threats.
Usman said security was the foundation for political stability and socio-economic development, noting that insecurity could disrupt schools, businesses, investments and democratic institutions.
He also highlighted Nigeria’s longstanding contribution to international peacekeeping, particularly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and other African theatres.
The retired general said Nigerian troops had participated extensively in United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS peace operations, contributing to Nigeria’s influence in regional and international affairs.
He added that the AFN had also contributed to national development through military engineering, medical services, logistics, humanitarian assistance, disaster response, education and technical training.
Usman noted that the military’s political role had evolved significantly since the return to democratic rule in 1999.
”The military has moved from being an actor in political governance to being a professional instrument of the democratic state, subordinate to the Constitution and legitimate civil authority,” he said.
He said the responsibility of the military was to the Constitution and Nigerian nation rather than any individual, government or political party.
He also called for sustained investment in the welfare, capabilities and professionalism of serving personnel and veterans.
Similarly, Okwori, a security consultant and lecturer at the Nigerian Army University Biu, described the military’s impact since independence as substantial, complex and mixed.
Okwori said the AFN had remained one of the principal institutions responsible for protecting Nigeria’s territorial integrity and responding to major national security crises.
He identified the civil war as a defining example of the military’s role in preserving Nigeria’s territorial unity.
He said however that the military’s political interventions through coups and subsequent periods of military rule had significant consequences for democratic development and civilian institutions.
He said military rule also produced some state-building initiatives but interrupted constitutional democratic governance.
According to him, the military’s most enduring contribution remained security because it was the core constitutional and professional responsibility of the armed forces.
Okwori said the military had repeatedly been deployed to address major security challenges, including the Niger Delta crisis, insurgency in the North-East, banditry, kidnapping and other violent threats.
He also highlighted Nigeria’s role in international peace operations, particularly in Liberia, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.
He said the armed forces had supported civil authorities through logistics, engineering, medical, transportation and security assistance during emergencies.
He added that military institutions had contributed to human-capital development through professional education and training in areas including engineering, medicine, intelligence, logistics and strategic studies.
Both experts, however, stressed the importance of maintaining professionalism and constitutional subordination of the armed forces in a democratic society.
As Nigeria marks 66 years of independence, the experts said the military’s role had evolved from conventional national defence and political intervention to a broader professional responsibility encompassing national security, peacekeeping and support to civil authorities.(NAN)
