The Interior Minister, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said on Tuesday that the federal government is making frantic efforts to tackle the nation’s security challenges.
Tunji-Ojo who was a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today, said the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru and the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, are losing sleep over the issue.
“Nobody is resting. Not the NSA, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, not the Minister of Defence, not the Chief of Defence Staff, not the DSS,” the minister said.
“Nobody is sleeping, we are working. This security issue is a major issue of national concern and I will not sit here and refuse to take responsibility for the security of Nigerians on behalf of the President.”
He stated that although security has improved in the country since President Bola Tinubu’s administration came on board, the minister stated that the Boko Haram terrorists and the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) have been degraded by troops.
The minister explained that the current administration has led by example in securing the lives and properties of Nigerians.
During the show, the minister weighed in on the recent attack by a new terror group in Sokoto and Kebbi State.
He urged Nigerians not to judge Tinubu, saying the President is aware of the security challenges.
“The President is sensitive to these issues. Do not judge the President, or this administration by the level of assurance. Talk is cheap, the real deal is the action.
“We came May 29 last year, I don’t want us to bring politics into this. We all know the situations across the board, have we gotten to where we want to get to? The answer is no. Are we where we were? The answer is no. We have made progress,” Tunji-Ojo stated.
Bobrisky Saga
The minister also gave an update on the issue of Bobrisky, a popular cross-dresser whose real name is Idris Okuneye.
Tunji-Ojo believes the Bobrisky saga is a reflection of institutional issues in the country.
Okuneye has been embroiled in a saga over his jail time for naira abuse.
A viral video claimed that the cross-driver paid some officials of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) to get special treatment in prison.
According to Tunji-Ojo, the incident which had dominated conversations for months, is a reflection of institutional issues.
“When you have an institutional problem, you don’t just provide a knee-jerk approach to solving it,” he said.
“We set up that committee to look into all the issues, beyond Bobrisky, beyond people absconding – it is a whole institutional issue.”
Tunji-Ojo said reforming Nigeria’s institutions is the way forward in resolving similar issues that may occur in the future.
“We cannot transfer today’s problem to the future,” the minister said.