Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, has instructed the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa to provide security for the repair of the electricity tower in order to hasten the restoration of power in parts of Nigeria’s Northwest, Northeast and Northcentral State.
According to a statement by Ministry of Defence Director of Information and Public Relations, the Minister of Defence said that the directive “is in conformity with the directives of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, who is very concerned about this development on the recent collapse of the grid due to third party interference which resulted in widespread power outages across Northern Nigeria, causing significant disruptions to citizens’ lives.”
The statement noted that “to prevent interference from non-state actors, the Minister has directed the Chief of Defence Staff to provide adequate security for the workers to repair this critical national infrastructure. The goal is to prioritize the repairs and ensure the grid’s functionality for the benefit of all citizens.
“The Honourable Minister urges all Nigerians, particularly those in affected states, to remain patient and show understanding as efforts are underway to address the situation.”
Meanwhile, Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to combating terrorism in the West Africa region and across the continent through its support for the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Centre (IMCTC).
Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, who spoke when he received a delegation from Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia led by Major General Mohammed bin Saleem Al-Moghidi in Ship House Abuja, said: “We are ready and willing to work with you hand in hand to achieve the set objectives. When we are talking about counter terrorism today, we have to critically look at West Africa and Africa in general.
“It is bleeding and whatever action you are doing we will support. I believe these countries in this region need a lot of support.
“By supporting IMCTC, Nigeria reaffirms its dedication to regional and global security, underscoring the importance of collective action in combating terrorism.”
Earlier the leader of the delegation, Major General Mohammed bin Saleem Al-Moghidi said that Nigeria and Saudi Arabia already have an existing bilateral relationship and that the purpose of their visit was to strengthen that relationship by way of intelligence sharing and training.