“Consistency is the true foundation of trust. Either keep your promises or do not make them.” Roy Bennett
The Defense Minister has a messaging problem.
In one breath he directs army officers to “shoot on sight” once deployed. In the next breath he tells an audience that “no country can shoot itself to peace.”
Both cannot be true at the same time. And Nigerians are right to ask, what exactly is the strategy?
“Shoot on sight” sounds strong. It projects toughness. In areas where bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers operate with impunity, soldiers need rules of engagement that protect them and civilians. No one is asking troops to go in with their hands tied.
But war is not won by bullets alone. If it were, we would have been at peace fifteen years ago. Boko Haram started in 2009. Banditry has spread across eight states. We have spent billions on arms. Yet insecurity persists.
That is why the second statement is actually the truth: no country can shoot itself to peace. Peace takes intelligence, community trust, justice, jobs, and political will. It takes cutting off funding, fixing porous borders, and prosecuting sponsors. It takes winning hearts in villages where terrorists recruit.
So when the Minister says both things, it feels like confusion, not clarity. Troops on the ground need consistent orders. Citizens need consistent policy.
What we need to hear is:
1. When is “shoot on sight” authorized, and who oversees it to prevent extrajudicial killings?
2. What is the non-kinetic plan? Deradicalization, dialogue, livelihoods, and local policing.
You cannot fire and preach in the same speech without explaining the bridge between them.
Because right now, it sounds like we want war and peace at the same time. And that is how you get neither.
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