The media must clearly understand what constitutes national interest and national security in the quest to address Nigeria’s security challenges.
The Director General of the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), Retired Major Garba Wahab made the call during a Roundtable with members of the Defence Correspondents Association of Nigeria (DECAN) in Abuja.
The themed of the roundtable is, “National Interest versus National Security: A Quest for Responsible Journalism.”
He said that the media had huge responsibility in ensuring that the reportage of the military activities and operations does not jeopardise national security.
According to him, the western media will never report anything that brings disrepute to their militaries, urging the Nigerian media to refrain from reporting issues that would have negative impact on the personnel.
Wahab said that the level of distrust between the military and media must be addressed for them to be able to work together.
“We must all work as a team to ensure that the system moves on. In a modern society like Nigeria, security is development and development is security. Without security, you can’t be developed. And without development, you can’t be secured. The two go together.
“So, we are pursuing security for us to be developed,” he said.
Wahab debunked the belief on the part of the populace that military personnel were often hostile to civilians, saying that things had greatly changed in the military.
He explained that the current Nigerian armed forces had undergone series of transformation since the return of democracy to the country.
According to him, all the service arms of the military have established their Department of Civil Military Affairs to be able to relate positively and harmoniously with the civil populace.
He urged the media to play active role in changing the narratives by educating the citizens on their responsibilities in supporting the efforts of the military.
The Director General said the centre had since its establishment in 2016 as a think-tank of the Nigerian Army, played crucial roles in capacity development of officers and soldiers as well as other security personnel and stakeholders.
He called for the strengthening of all the security, intelligence and paramilitary agencies to be able to address the national security challenges.
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