First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Monday warned that the erosion of family values was fueling insecurity and social vices across the country.
Speaking at the opening of Exercise Haske Biyu 2025 at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC), Jaji, Kaduna State, Mrs. Tinubu, represented by the wife of the Vice President, Hajiya Nana Shettima, said families must reclaim their role as the foundation of society.
Speaking to the theme of the event; ‘Family and National Security’, the First Lady noted that many parents, in the struggle to survive, have abandoned their primary duty of raising children, leaving them vulnerable to negative influences such as cultism, drug abuse, prostitution, and extremist ideologies.
“This parental absence creates a void which often gets filled by bad company and destructive behaviour. The outcome is not only catastrophic for families but also dangerous for national security,” the First Lady cautioned.
According to her, the family remains the bedrock of society, where Nigerians of different tribes, religions, and traditions first learn values of love, respect, sacrifice and duty. “A strong family builds a strong nation,” she stressed.
Mrs. Tinubu who was the Keynote Speaker, also underscored the role of religion in strengthening morals and unity, urging religious and traditional leaders to intensify efforts in teaching young people the right principles of faith and reinforcing positive values.
She assured that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda is focused on supporting families, citing the scaled-up Conditional Cash Transfer programme, which will deliver N25,000 in three tranches to 15 million vulnerable households.
The First Lady pledged that her Renewed Hope Initiative would continue to complement government’s interventions to uplift Nigerian families and promote stability.
“I urge us all to go forward from Exercise Haske Biyu stronger, more united and mindful of why we serve: for family, for love of country, and for a more secure tomorrow,” she said, before declaring the three-week training exercise open.
Earlier, Commandant of the AFCSC, Air Vice Marshal Hassan Idris Alhaji, described Exercise Haske Biyu as a bold, multi-agency initiative designed to sharpen responses to internal security and low-intensity conflicts.
He said the exercise, which runs from September 15 to October 3, brings together senior officers from security agencies, ministries, NGOs, media and strategic partners to build synergy and develop practical solutions to contemporary threats.
Highlights of the programme include strategic lectures, operational planning drills, case studies, and practical field demonstrations, as well as an interactive “Day in the Life of a Soldier” for civilian participants.
Alhaji stressed that the family-security theme was deliberately chosen to remind participants that the battle against insecurity begins at home.
The Commandant expressed optimism that the outcomes would strengthen collaboration among agencies and produce actionable strategies for tackling insecurity in Nigeria.
