By Chimezie Godfrey
The Ashcraft Centre for Social Science Researchers has called for partnership and support of all stakeholders in protecting Nigeria’s critical infrastructure and other assets.
The Centre made the call Tuesday in Abuja during a press conference to formally unveil the statutory forthcoming South-South zonal stakeholders summit on “Domesticating Responsibilities in Stakeholders Protecting Nigera’s Critical Infrastructures and Assets.”
Chief of Strategic Planning and Innovations, Ashcraft CSSR Head of Secretariat, Summit Planning Committee, Dr. Chiakor Alfred noted that the said summit shall hold at the Atlantic Hall, Hotel Presidential, Aba Road – Port Harcourt, on 25th and 26th July, 2022.
He recalled that previous summit was convened with the priority objective to infuse a national high end architecture for systemized response strategy; explore turnkey solutions for deterrence, threat mitigation and recovery; accelerate strategies for systematic intelligence generation and dissemination and increased security consciousness; establish a network of proactive Stakeholders, Agencies and Policy Making Institutions to initiate, follow up and implement creative strategies; rethink strategies for strengthening the ability of Business Assets to recover and withstand from disruption; galvanize synergy for the prioritization of the multi Agency/Joint Risk Management efforts to ensure the security and resilience of Nigeria’s critical Infrastructures and Assets in line with identified policy frameworks.
According to him, the imperative to domesticate the actionable blueprints and Resolutions derived from the Abuja Summit in the Geopolitical Zones and Host Communities form the basis of the convention of the South – South Regional Summit.
Dr Alfred pointed out that Nigeria is at present experiencing an intensity of insecurity, comparable to what obtained in Lebanon in the mid 1980s, adding that the almost daily recurrent cases of terrorism, insurgency, cyber-crimes, banditry, kidnapping, piracy, oil bunkering, drug trafficking and other forms of organised crime, have created an entirely new security environment.
According to him, Nigeria now faces more security threats that have different characteristics from classic military conflict between states, adding that the gross expansion of the contours that define security boundaries makes it imperative to recognize the eco-systemic dimensions of the threats that stare at us daily and in every form.
In view of the foregoing, he called for stakeholders partnership and support to tackle the menace of infrastructural vandalism and the worsening insecurity in the country.
He said,””Ladies and Gentlemen, the security of lives, infrastructures, monuments and assets is the collective responsibility of every citizen, whether private or public. Issues of security, destruction of lives and property know neither religion nor ethnicity.
“We are calling on the partnership and support of all Stakeholders, both in the Public and Private Sectors, with diverse political, religious and professional orientations to put aside all prejudices to help forge a common front to confront the monster that is threatening the integrity of our corporate existence as a people and as a nation. It is time also to live the slogan that says “if you see something, say something. If you hear something, do something”
“It is incumbent on us all therefore to engage robustly on how to deter and mitigate these challenges in a systematic and coordinated manner. This way, we can be sure of preserving our collective heritage and sanctity of our God endowed resources, both human, technical and material.”
Dr Alfred regretfully recalled the senseless slaughter of over a platoon of Soldiers in Shiroro – Niger State, the deadly attack and invasion of Kuje prisons by terrorist elements ; the brazen attack on the advance team of the Presidential Convoy in Katsina State, the Owo Church attack in Ondo State, the ransacking of the Tukur Yusufu Buratai Institute for War and Peace, Biu – Borno State by ISWAP terrorists, the adduction and killing of priests in Kaduna, Edo and Benue States to name but an atrocious few, adding that the mushrooming of these orgies of killings and destructions are gangrene to Nigera’s national integrity.
He noted that one of the most worrisome challenges to Nigeria’s national economic development is the systematic vandalisation, degradation and destruction of its critical national infrastructures and business assets.
“The consequences of these criminal activities constitute adverse national security risks of untold proportions and impact our collective destiny gravely by undermining investor confidence; inhibiting the drive for Foreign Direct Investment, social capital growth & real business development; and truncating real progress in other sectors of the national economy.
“You will appreciate the unfortunate fact that the aggregation of uncertainties caused by the hostile operating environment has led to the liquidation and/or relocation to other countries of viable industries and business franchises that provided employment opportunities and other economic value chains to Nigerians. These have depressed the national economy and triggered high rates of unemployment and other attendant problems.
“The intensity of the diverse and numerous crises of vandalisation and destruction of Nigeria’s infrastructures and assets has prompted, at several instances, the call to arms by His Excellency Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the Armed Forces, Intelligence and Security Establishment and all Nigerians to see it as a patriotic duty to ensure maximum vigilance and shared responsibility in the protection and security of these Assets and platforms at all points in their life-cycle.
“The South South Zonal Stakeholders Summit is therefore a Private/Public Sector Partnership that aims at building synergy, tact and appropriate techniques to enhance knowledge leadership & management in the development of a strategic road map for proactive intervention and response strategy in line with the Risk Management Framework and provisions of the National Protection Policy and Strategy 2022 (CNAINPPS 2022); Petroleum Industry Act, 2021; the National Security Strategy Framework; and the Critical National Infrastructure Bill, 2021 currently under consideration at the National Assembly,” he said.
He said the South South Zonal Stakeholders Summit further aims to intensify advocacy for Stakeholders Statutory Responsibilities.
“It shall also engender the re-engineering of appropriate legislations; and the strategic roadmap for harnessing expert knowledge and country wide technical support for deterrence, codified response strategy and recovery architecture to Nigeria’s critical assets.
“Equally important is the desire to seek renewed commitment to the challenges impacting the integrity of critical infrastructures and assets in the Region, especially the vandalisation and destruction of its complex ecosystem of separate yet interconnected infrastructures in the Oil and Gas; Telecommunications, Transportation and Power Sectors.
“To achieve the projected outcome and also sustain confidence building, diverse Stakeholders are mobilized to discuss the challenges impacting the integrity, operations and security of these critical infrastructures and Assets and also seek possible solutions and suggestions.
“The Stakeholders being mobilized to the Summit include but are not limited to: Nigeria’s National and State Legislatures; the Armed Forces, Security and Intelligence Agencies; Statutory Regulators in the diverse Sectors of Nigeria’s productive economy; Investors/Business Owners; Operators of the Infrastructures and Assets; Professional and Civil Society Organizations; the Traditional Institution, Socio Cultural and Pressure Groups, etc,” he revealed.
Dr Alfred stressed that by building inter/multi sectoral synergy, the Summit shall engender stakeholders and citizens with shared responsibilities towards achieving the institutionalization of the road map and priorities of the policy frameworks crafted to provide deterrence, security and resilience of Nigeria’s assets.
“It is also the expectation of the Conveners that the derivatives from the Summit shall enhance knowledge leadership & management, regenerate confidence in securing Foreign Direct Investment into the country’s productive Sectors; and also boost capital growth and turnkey business startups and development,” Dr. Alfred added.
