Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa has described the family as a strategic pillar of national security, stressing its vital role in instilling discipline, resilience, and cohesion needed for stability.
General Musa stated this in a lecture titled “The Role of the Family in National Stability: A Strategic Security Perspective” at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, Kaduna State.
General Musa, who was represented by the Chief of Defence Training, Rear Admiral Ibrahim Shettima, noted that stable families nurture values that protect society against crime, radicalisation, and violent extremism.
According to him, “families that provide literacy, discipline, and emotional support reduce the likelihood of deviance, while broken homes create conditions that fuel disunity, delinquency, and vulnerability to extremist ideologies.”
General Musa emphasised that families should not be seen only as socialising agents but also as critical security actors whose stability directly influences the nation’s capacity to withstand crises.
“This explains why global security institutions increasingly view strengthened family systems as vital components of comprehensive national security strategies,” he said.
General Musa explained that families generate the human, cultural, and moral capital required for cohesion and political stability.
According to him, moral order originates within the family, and without such grounding, economic and political structures remain fragile and open to exploitation.
National resilience
General Musa warned that weak family institutions create vulnerabilities such as insolvency, criminal networks, and external manipulation as in contrast, reversing family breakdown strengthens national resilience and enhances community defenses against insecurity.
He defined the family as the most fundamental unit of society and primary social institution, serving as a vehicle for cultural preservation, emotional support, and civic responsibility.
“Whether nuclear or extended, the family remains the foundation of social order and continuity,” he stated.
General Musa explained that stability is not merely the absence of conflict but the presence of functional institutions, governance legitimacy, and social harmony while linking the family to national stability,
“A stable nation ensures continuity in governance, sustainable peace, and resilience against both internal and external threats,” he said.
He noted that the nexus between family, national stability, and strategic security is inseparable.
“By nurturing disciplined, responsible, and resilient citizens, families form the bedrock of a secure and prosperous nation capable of withstanding emerging global threats,”he said.
General Musa echoed Charles Price’s description of the family as an institution that guarantees maintenance and transmits cultural values necessary for social continuity.
Respect for authority
He stressed that beyond nurturing individuals, families produce responsible citizens whose behavior underpins national order, respect for authority, and civic responsibility.
General Musa warned that the weakening of family roles has spiritual and social consequences, as delinquency, radicalization, and unrest often correlate with fragmented homes.
He noted that research shows that youths from fractured families are more vulnerable to recruitment by extremist movements, particularly when compounded by poverty, displacement, and inequality.
The Defence Chief explained that families serve as the first line of defense against threats to social order by equipping individuals with stable identities and resilient values.
He noted that they also act as custodians of cultural heritage, safeguarding languages, traditions, and collective memory that bind citizens to a shared national identity especially crucial in an era of globalization where foreign influences threaten social cohesion.
The General highlighted the indispensable economic role of families, describing them as the basic units of production, consumption, and wealth transfer.
However, when family economies collapse under unemployment and poverty, the resulting stress manifests in violence, divorce, or abandonment often cascading into broader national instability.
Offering support networks
While governments and militaries respond to insecurity at the macro level, families sustain cohesion at the grassroots by nurturing resilience, transmitting solidarity, and offering support networks.
The Defence Chief advocated integrating family centered strategies into national security frameworks, warning that without strong families, nations face higher risks of crime, corruption, radicalization, and weakened democratic institutions.
Lateefah Ibrahim