Former Chief of Defence Staff, Abayomi Olonisakin, on Thursday said Nigerian’s next warfare and crisis will be in the forests.
The retired military general, who resigned as Chief of Defence Staff last January after six years of service in the top role, made the remark while being screened at the National Assembly for an ambassadorial position.
According to Olonisakin, a research he conducted on forests three years ago showed that Nigeria has over one thousand forest reserves and there is an urgent need to man and protect the forests which have become hideouts for criminals.
According to a 1992 World Bank report, Nigeria’s forest reserves covers 10% of the country’s total land area.
Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, last January ordered illegal occupants to vacate the state’s forest reserves sparking a national conversation on land use and appropriation.
