Security experts, on Thursday, faulted the appeal for prayers by the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru, to end security challenges plaguing the country, saying prayer alone cannot fight insecurity.
The defence minister had urged Nigerians to support him and other security heads in the country with prayers to succeed in their efforts to restore peace in many troubled areas.
Badaru made the call on Thursday when he received a delegation from Jigawa State, in Abuja.
He said, “Due to the security challenges and other aspects of national development, one can only but ask for prayers to succeed.
“The message I will give is that you should continue to pray for us and the nation so that we can continue to succeed. We need your prayers to succeed in this task.”
Speaking earlier, the Jigawa State Governor, Umar Namadi, who led traditional rulers, religious leaders, the business community, and public office holders from the state on the visit their coming was to congratulate the minister and assure him of their support.
He said Nigerians’ expectations of the minister were high having succeeded in the state.
Namadi said, “Nigerians have high expectations that you would prioritise and deal with insecurity in the country. Once you can do this, it covers every aspect of the nation.
“We are lucky that we are peaceful in Jigawa, but that does not mean that we don’t need your assistance, we also need your assistance as you help other states.”
However, a security expert, Oladele Fajana, who spoke with our correspondent, said prayer alone cannot solve the security challenges in the country.
He said, “He (minister) should sit tight. We have to be practical and deploy technology to fight insecurity. Prayer alone can’t solve the problem.”
Another security expert, Jackson Ojo, said, “It is a double-edged sword, one could be sharper and more active than the other. Prayer is not bad. The Quran and Bible say we should pray for our leaders but prayer without work is dead. Also, when it comes to security matters, prayer is not the answer. Prayer does not fight insecurity.”
