Troops Can Track Bandits Only When They Can Locate Ordinary Citizens, Says Buratai

Former Chief of Army Staff Lt‑Gen Turkur Buratai stated that the Nigerian military can locate bandits if it can first locate ordinary citizens.

Buratai made the comment on Monday during a TVC interview.

He was asked whether Nigerian troops possess the capability to rescue the schoolchildren and teachers abducted in Oyo State.

In that incident, gunmen seized pupils and educators, and one teacher was beheaded.

"I don’t believe security agencies cannot locate bandits if they can locate ordinary citizens and social media influencers," Buratai said.

"However, I would not say it is a capacity‑building challenge; they may have their reasons. What I know is that all security agencies need capacity building," he added.

"We need more troops to be recruited, more operatives, more policemen to be recruited, trained and retrained," he concluded.