Fancy seeing reporters kitted up and actually moving with soldiers on the frontline? That could soon be a thing in Nigeria.

The Federal Government is toying with a fresh idea, letting journalists tag along with the military during selected operations. The whole point, they say, is to make security reporting less guesswork and give Nigerians a proper, unfiltered look at what counterinsurgency really looks like up close.

The gist dropped on Thursday at the National Security Summit organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Abuja. Gen. Christopher Musa, speaking through his Special Adviser Rear Admiral Olusanya Bankole, said the defence ministry is exploring ways to embed reporters with units in the field.

His argument is pretty straightforward. These days, wars are not just fought with guns, they are fought with narratives too. The media, he said, is not just a loudspeaker, it is actually a stabiliser for government and a key player in national security.

"The defence ministry is exploring arrangements to embed journalists with military units during operations to enable more accurate reporting and deeper understanding of operational realities," Musa said.

He added that we should not judge security wins by body counts or captured territories alone. The real test is whether ordinary Nigerians actually trust the institutions meant to protect them.

It is also about fixing a long-standing friction. For years, security agencies have been knocked for locking journalists out of operational areas, which has left room for rumours, conflicting casualty figures and plenty of public scepticism. Better access, the ministry reckons, means better trust and ultimately better security outcomes.

No rollout date yet, but the signal is clear: the military wants the press closer, not farther away, as Nigeria continues to juggle insurgency and other internal threats.

Source: cbinews.tv

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