Minister of Defense, Bashir Magashi, a retired major general, has said it is the responsibility of every citizen to be at alert amid the insecurity in Nigeria.

Magashi made the disclosure during a chat with journalists as relayed in a video posted on Twitter by AIT.

He said people should show that they are not cowards by defending themselves.

He said the operations of bandits are sometimes carried out with a few rounds of ammunition to cause fear on the citizenry.

His words, “It is the responsibility of everybody to keep alert and to find safety when necessary. But we shouldn’t be cowards.

“At times, the bandits will only come with about three rounds of ammunition, when they fire shots everybody runs.

“In our younger days, we stood to fight any aggression coming for us.

“I don’t know why people are running from minor things like that. They should stand and let these people know that even the villagers have the competency and capabilities to defend themselves.

‘Our own duty is to ensure that no Nigerian is hurt, and we are capable of protecting the integrity of this nation and we’ll continue to do it even though we are so stretched.”

Commenting on whether the government should permit citizens to carry arms, Magashi said, “Even in the developed countries, they are still debating on it, whether to continue or not.

“But I don’t advise Nigeria to start issuing firearms for personal use.”

Vanguard