ACSSR Plans Stakeholders Summit for National Assets, Critical Infrastructure Protection

A civil society organization, the Ashcraft Centre for Social Science Research (ACSSR) has raised the alarm over the spate of vandalism and destruction of national assets and critical infrastructure in Nigeria, particularly in the oil and gas, telecommunications, transportation and power sectors.

Therefore, the group has concluded plans to organise a South-South Stakeholders Summit on domesticating stakeholders’ statutory responsibilities in protecting Nigeria’s critical infrastructure and assets.

Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt on Monday, ACSSR’s Chief of Strategic Planning and Innovations, Dr. Chiakor Alfred, decried the rampancy and intensity of the vandalisation and destruction of the country’s infrastructure and assets.

Alfred stated that the summit, scheduled to hold on July 25 and 26, 2022 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, was a public/private sector partnership aimed at galvanising responsibility and energy for the prioritization of the multi-agency/joint risk management efforts to ensure the security and resilience of Nigeria’s critical national assets.

He said: “The last two decades have demonstrated clearly that the nature of threats to Nigeria’s security have changed significantly.

“Structural challenges, such as the systematic vandalization, degradation and destruction of Nigeria’s critical national infrastructures, monuments and business assets; terrorism, insurgency, cyber-crimes, banditry, kidnapping, piracy, oil bunkering, drug trafficking and other forms of organized crime, have created an entirely new security environment.

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“Nigeria now faces more security threats that have different characteristics from classic military conflict between states. The gross expansion of the contours that define security boundaries makes it imperative to recognize the eco-systemic dimensions of the threats that stare at us daily and in every form.

“The rampancy and intensity of the vandalization and destruction of Nigeria’s infrastructures and assets prompted the call to arms by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, to the Armed Forces, intelligence and security establishments and all Nigerians to see it as a patriotic duty to ensure maximum vigilance and shared responsibility in the protection and security of these assets and platforms at all points in their lifecycle.

“The security of lives, infrastructures, monuments and assets is the collective responsibility of every citizen, whether private or public. Issues of security, destruction of lives and property know neither religion nor ethnicity. We are calling on the partnership and support of all stakeholders, both in the public and private sectors, with diverse political, religious and professional orientations to put aside all prejudices to help forge a common front to confront the monster that is threatening the integrity of our corporate existence as a people and as a nation.”