Buhari tells journalists to report 'declining insecurity' not 'rising insecurity'

President Muhammadu Buhari has called on the journalists to change their tone of reporting on insecurity in the country.

The Federal Government has struggled with containing escalating insecurity all over the country, with security agents dealing with multi-faceted crises across regions.

However, in a statement on Monday, October 18, 2021, President Buhari said the narrative of rising insecurity is inaccurate.

He said the nation's security agencies are reacting appropriately to challenges, and that the media must adapt its tone, content, and standards of reporting to match that.

"While there is work to do, the men and women in uniform who are helping the nation to achieve this goal, desire our collective appreciation and encouragement to do even more.

"The whole country and its mass communications systems have a duty in this regard," he said.

The 78-year-old said increased cooperation and collaboration from the citizenry to match the efforts of security agencies will help to ensure victory over terror, criminality, and economic sabotage.

The president's statement was made public just hours after over 30 people were killed by bandits in Sokoto State.

Sokoto is one of the northern states that shut down telecommunications services last month as part of new measures to crack down on banditry.

Goronyo, where the latest attack happened, is one of the 14 local government areas where networks were shut down to enhance the military's offensive against the bandits.