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Open Criticism Demoralising Military, Emboldening Terrorists – Group Warns

Published

6 years ago

December 3, 2020

A coalition of various civil society groups has condemned the open criticism of the Nigeria military in their quest to stamp out the activities of terrorists and all forms of banditry in our society, identifying the fact that it portends a dangerous implication of demoralizing the gallantry of our military officers at the front line of the battle and emboldening the terrorist. This was revealed by the groups at a recent press briefing in Abuja.

In a statement issued at the briefing and signed by Comrade Joseph Onu, United Nigeria Forum, Comrade Wale Adegoke, Progressive Action for Justice, Unity and Development and Musa Abdullahi, Transparency Center Network, the group condemned the dangerous trend which is becoming prominent among public affairs analysts, social influencers, etc,

The statement read in part ” For more than ten years now, our dear country Nigeria and more specifically the Nigerian military, has been an extraordinary battle against the siege of a rabid, ravaging and resurging form of terrorism notoriously known as Boko Haram.

The destructive activities of Boko Haram must be condemned by all well-meaning citizens.

We have seen them alongside their Islamic State of West Africa affiliate (ISWAP)gleefully slaughter men, women, children, and our gallant men of the armed forces; in raids of unsuspecting communities in the rural and urban areas; in their bloodthirsty bombings of places of worship, the ambush of wayfarers and other forms of gruesome killings. We must collectively confront their dastardly acts on a scale larger than the world has ever witnessed in wars of continental dimension”.

In economic terms, the reign of terror has brought part of our country to a state of comatose, the economic activities of particularly North East, North West and commercial engagement with other neighboring countries have been badly affected.

Recently, there are series of open criticism by a section of the society as to the capacity of the Nigerian military to decimate the Boko Haram and arms bandits terrorizing most parts of the country. We view the criticism as not necessarily relate to the ability, capacity, and preparedness of the Nigerian military to perform the mandate of restoring normalcy to the affected areas but a sinister design to demoralize the Nigerian security agencies. Criticism of this nature is capable of giving the insurgents the lifeline of support they desperately need to stage more daring attacks.

It is important for us at this juncture to appeal that such criticism is moderated in order to encourage our armed forces to advance towards the line of defense of the enemy. Undiluted commentaries being witnessed are encouraging the terrorists to stage further daring attacks. Boko Haram and other purveyors of anarchy thrive on propaganda and maximum publicity.

Also, our major concern revolves around the fact we should as a people not forget the sacrifices made by the gallant military men including those that paid the supreme price in the execution of the difficult mission against Boko Haram now largely confined to parts of Borno and isolated in Yobe state.

We must as patriotic citizens exercise greater restrain even while making positive criticism against the conduct of the counter-insurgency operations by the Nigerian military. We must eschew spreading bitterness, falsehood, and misleading posture capable of distracting and demoralizing our Armed Forces. We must encourage those that lost loved ones, widows, and children left behind to continue to cheer our forces in the front lines so that the sacrifices of our heroes past shall never be in vain. We suppose them to defeat our bigger enemy.

We posit that instead of demoralizing the patriotic men and women still fighting in the front lines, we should encourage them to continue making enormous sacrifices to the best of their ability to our father.

To the critics of our military abroad making a misplaced and misleading statement, they should place their criticism where it rightly belongs, the doorstep of Boko Haram that has added the blood cuddling, insane and unimaginable macabre practice of slaughtering innocent harvesting crops in their farms as witnessed few days in Zabarmari, Borno State. They should clamor for an international action aimed towards speedy prosecution of Boko Haram murderers anywhere they are hiding in and outside Nigeria.

It is to the credit of the Nigerian military that they have succeeded in blocking the lines of supplies of food, medicine, and other essential commodities to the terrorists thereby suffocating them in insatiable hunger and desperation to have access to food and other necessities”.

The concluded by advocating that It will advance the course of our democracy and security in Nigeria for the International powers to support us properly, equip our armed forces with the needed instrument to timely anticipate attacks such as the type witnessed against the Borno farmers a few days ago and nip them in the bud as preemptive strike tactics against the satanic, godless and bloodthirsty Boko Haram/ISWAP and other terrorist groups in our dear country.

The material and Intelligence support should not be seen as discretionary charity. It is a charity earned as the discharge of duty and ingredient precedent to security, peace, and development consolidation in Nigeria and the sub-region.

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Strategic Partnerships, Diaspora Investment and Improved Workforce Critical to Industrialization-DG RMRDC

Published

1 day ago

November 12, 2026

The Gleamer

By: Stella Azi and Adaora Adibe

The Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, has called for a strategic shift from the exportation of raw commodities to domestic processing, manufacturing and value addition, declaring that Nigeria possesses enormous untapped raw material resources capable of driving industrialisation, creating jobs and strengthening the country’s economic competitiveness.

Prof. Ike-Muonso made this submission in a lecture titled Unlocking Nigeria’s Raw Material Value Chain for Industrialization, Manufacturing and Competitiveness, where he presented an extensive assessment of Nigeria’s resource endowments, industrial challenges and emerging investment opportunities across agricultural commodities, solid minerals and waste-based raw materials.

The lecture highlighted a combined US$2.65 trillion global market opportunity across 30 major raw material value chains, comprising 12 agricultural value chains valued at US$932 billion, 11 mineral value chains worth US$1.352 trillion and seven circular-economy value chains estimated at US$366 billion.

According to the RMRDC Boss, Nigeria must move beyond the traditional approach of extracting and exporting raw materials to building competitive domestic industries that transform these resources into intermediate products, industrial inputs and finished goods for local consumption and international markets.

He observed that the country’s manufacturing sector has struggled to sustain its 2014 peak, with its contribution to real Gross Domestic Product declining from 9.64 per cent in 2014 to 8.05 per cent in 2025, representing a 16.5 per cent decline. He also drew attention to the increasing cost of raw material imports, which rose to US$20.5 billion in 2025, approximately six times the 2020 level.

He explained that the growing dependence on imported industrial inputs exposes Nigerian manufacturers to foreign exchange volatility, increases production costs and weakens the competitiveness of locally manufactured products.

Prof. ke-Muonso stressed that the solution lies in developing domestic raw material value chains through deliberate investment in processing facilities, research and development, technology, infrastructure and stronger linkages between producers, processors and manufacturers.

He identified agriculture, solid minerals and industrial waste as three major resource platforms for Nigeria’s industrial transformation, stating the country’s significant production capacity and the enormous opportunities available for downstream processing.

Ike-Muonso noted that Nigeria produces over 63 million metric tonnes of cassava annually, making it the world’s largest producer, while also maintaining strong positions in cocoa, cashew, sesame, palm oil and cotton. However, more than 80 per cent of agricultural output leaves farms without adequate processing, resulting in the loss of significant economic value and industrial opportunities.

In the solid minerals sector, he identified more than 44 commercially viable minerals across over 500 locations, including lithium, gold, barite, bitumen, iron ore and high-grade limestone, describing them as strategic resources capable of supporting steel production, energy storage, electrification and advanced manufacturing.

The DG further drew attention to Nigeria’s industrial and agro-waste resources, noting that the country generates over 32 million tonnes of solid waste annually. He explained that agricultural residues, cassava peels, scrap metals, plastics and electronic waste could serve as important feedstock for bio-fertilisers, industrial chemicals, recycled polymers, energy production and other manufacturing applications.

In the agricultural sector, the DG identified cassava and industrial starch, cotton and natural textiles, natural rubber and elastomers, oil palm and oleochemicals, maize derivatives and cocoa processing as priority areas requiring increased investment.

He explained that processing agricultural commodities into industrial starch, sweeteners, textiles, technical rubber, specialty fats and other intermediate products would enable Nigeria to capture more value from its agricultural resources while reducing dependence on imported industrial inputs.

For the minerals sector, he highlighted crude oil-to-olefins and petrochemicals, lithium and energy storage, iron ore and steel, rare earth elements, bauxite and aluminium, and copper and electrification as strategic investment opportunities.

He particularly emphasised the importance of moving beyond mineral extraction into beneficiation, refining, battery precursors, industrial chemicals, metal fabrication and advanced materials production.

On the circular economy, Prof. Ike-Muonso identified electronic waste recovery, scrap metal recycling, plastic waste processing, agro-waste valorisation and battery recycling as emerging industrial opportunities.

He explained that transforming waste into productive industrial feedstock would not only reduce environmental pollution but also create new manufacturing industries, generate employment and reduce the importation of valuable industrial materials.

He noted that to address the structural challenges confronting raw material-based industrialisation, the DG highlighted the strategic interventions of the RMRDC, particularly the proposed 30% Value Addition Bill and the Nigeria Integrated Information Statistical System for Raw Materials and Products (NISSRAMP).

He described the 30% Value Addition Bill as an important policy instrument designed to encourage domestic processing of raw materials before export, strengthen local manufacturing capacity and guarantee access to essential raw materials for Nigerian industries, and NISSRAMP as a critical data infrastructure that would improve access to verified information on the availability, location and quality of raw materials.

According to him, the combination of appropriate policy instruments and reliable resource data would help de-risk investments, improve transparency and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He emphasised the importance of collaboration among government, academia and industry in developing bankable projects, sharing investment risks and accelerating the establishment of processing and manufacturing facilities.

Professor Ike-Muonso called on Nigerians in the diaspora and other local and international investors to take advantage of the opportunities available in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He identified industrial processing parks, mineral beneficiation and refining, agro-industrial platforms, circular-material processing, industrial input manufacturing and enabling infrastructure as viable investment platforms.

He noted that diaspora investors could contribute beyond financial capital by bringing technology, international business networks, governance standards, technical expertise and access to global markets.

He maintained that Nigeria’s industrial transformation requires coordinated investment across the entire value chain, from raw material sourcing and aggregation to processing, manufacturing, certification and export development.

Professor Ike-Muonso stressed that the country’s industrial future would depend not merely on the volume of raw materials extracted but on the capacity to transform them into competitive products that meet domestic and international market requirements.

He maintained that developing local value chains would stimulate industrial growth, create employment opportunities, diversify exports, conserve foreign exchange and deepen Nigeria’s technological capabilities.

Through its strategic interventions, the RMRDC is positioning itself as a critical bridge between resource availability, investment opportunities and industrial competitiveness, with the ultimate objective of transforming Nigeria from a predominantly raw material exporting economy into a strong manufacturing and value-adding nation.

Ike-Muonso has demonstrated this since assumption of office as the Director General/ CEO RMRDC in the area of capacity building, improved working conditions, promotion of merit, and maintaining a conducive environment that rewards excellence, innovation and dedication. This is evident in his institution of RMRDC training school, reward for winners of the RMRDC innovation challenge among others.

His commitment has brought recognition both nationally and internationally: Al-Jazirah double honour awards as Public Servant /Government Agency of the year 2024-2025 and the recent election as the Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Representative on the Board of the World Association of Industrial and Technological Research Organisations (WAITRO) is a attestation to his commitment.

Concluding the lecture, the DG charged staff, researchers, manufacturers and investors to see themselves as nation builders in the new era of raw materials-led industrialization.

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