Rivers to Borno: Security Expert Demands Urgent Troop Redeployment as Insurgents Gain Ground”
Ex-DSS Official Warns of “Reputational Risk” as Boko Haram, ISWAP Violence Intensifies in Nigeria’s Northeast
Former Department of State Services (DSS) Assistant Director Dennis Amachree has called for an immediate redeployment of military forces from Rivers State to Borno State, labeling the current troop presence in the oil-rich south as a “misplaced priority” amid escalating terrorism in Nigeria’s northeast.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday, Amachree criticized the heavy military deployment under Rivers State’s state of emergency, arguing that Borno’s worsening insurgency demands urgent attention. “Our territorial integrity is in question, and the reputational risk is very high. Why keep soldiers in Rivers when Borno is burning?” he asked.
Amachree’s appeal aligns with Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum’s recent alarm over terrorists reclaiming swathes of territory. The ex-DSS official urged federal authorities to replicate past strategies: “When troops were surged into Borno before, it worked. That’s where we need a state of emergency now.”
Borno, a Sahelian state bordering Chad, Niger, and Cameroon, remains the epicenter of attacks by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters. Recent years have seen hundreds of civilians and soldiers killed, with entire communities displaced into overcrowded IDP camps.
Amachree’s stark warning underscores a growing debate over Nigeria’s security priorities as insurgent violence threatens to destabilize the region further. “Every Nigerian deserves to feel safe,” he stressed. “It’s time to act before Borno’s crisis becomes Nigeria’s catastrophe.
