Minister: Nigeria has the technology to fight insurgency

The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, has said that Nigeria has what it takes to battle insurgency in the country.

The Minister stated this while delivering a lecture titled “Role of Science and Technology in National Development” to  students of the senior course 39/2016 of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Kaduna.

According to the Minister, "the Ministry of Science and Technology has the wherewithal that will enable the nation’s Security apparatus to build its capacity, improve intelligence, productivity and effectively secure the nation."

Onu recalled the peak of insurgency in the North East Zone when unknown flags were flown in Local Government headquarters in some states and the armed forces needed weapons to fight and defeat the insurgents.

“Even with cash at hand, we could not buy weapons. If we had invested in Science and technology and established our own defense industry, we would not have been confronted with that level of embarrassment”, he said.

While also noting that “the future of Nigeria today lies in science and technology", he said that nations that truly desire to develop, modernize their economy and remain competitive, must embrace scientific and technological knowledge.

"Whatever any nation can sell to us, it must be clear in our minds that such nations have ways they can render such weapon ineffective in case of conflicts involving us that are against their national interest. 

"We must learn from the mistakes that our ancestors made in the past. When some nations utilized the science and technology of those days in building up their national capabilities, our ancestors did not", Onu stated emphatically.

According to the Minister, the acquisitions of knowledge and its deployment has enabled many nations attain very high standard of living, while the neglect of same has adversely affected both the living conditions of the people and the influence of nations.

“It is also very important for us never to forget that hardly can any nation give to another its best weapons and military equipment", Onu noted, while calling on Nigerians to rise up and use science, engineering, technology and innovation to efficiently exploit the enormous natural resources that God has endowed Nigeria with.

He further stated that "the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, working closely with the Ministry of Defense can do a lot in helping our dear country meet many of her defense needs. Our armed forces, noted for their gallantry and patriotism, should be ready to use made in Nigeria goods and services." 

"This will not only help grow the economy, improve productivity and competitiveness, create jobs but will also help our military to be one of the best in the world", he added.