Politicians Weaponizing Insecurity For Political Gain –Okonjo-Iweala

The Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said Nigerian politicians are weaponising insecurity for political and selfish reasons.

Okonjo-Iweala condemned the act, stating that it has led to the country’s current state.

Speaking the opening ceremony of the 2024 Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association in Lagos State, Okonjo-Iweala emphasized that security and development are intertwined, adding that politicians’ actions have hindered the country’s progress.

The former Minister of Finance, who delivered a keynote address entitled, ‘A Social Contract For Nigeria’s Future’, asserted that there would not be any development in the country without having adequate security.

She said, “We cannot have socio-economic development without security.

“We certainly cannot have security without development. We all know that security has been weaponised in our country for political purposes by political actors, leading partly to the situation we have now.

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“We have politicians who believe that the best way to make their opponents look bad is to instigate insecurity, making it look like they can’t govern, regardless of whether this leads to loss of lives and property of innocent Nigerians. This has to stop.”

Speaking further, the former minister said the massive crude oil theft has affected the strengthening of the nation’s foreign reserves.

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According to her, there are enough technological innovations to track crude oil theft and bring those behind the act to book, adding that there should not be any excuses not to do so.

She said, “A second aspect of security relates to the security of national assets. Nigerians have seen for years how organised crude oil theft on a massive scale seriously undermines the economic and financial health of the country.

“All Nigerians must agree that stealing of our national assets of any type is intolerable and must be stopped.”

“There is so much technology available now to track such theft, and there must be no more excuses for inaction.”