A former Nigerian Ambassador to Angola, Mr. Layiwola Laseinde, on Monday urged the Federal Government to ensure effective coordination of security agencies to curb illegal importation of small arms and light weapons.

He said the Immigration, Customs, Police and other security agencies should also synergise with similar security agencies from other West African countries to check weapons from moving from country to country through West Africa's porous borders which he said were used to perpetrate all sorts of heinous crimes. He urged governments of other West African countries to coordinate, consult and align on strategies to solve the Boko Haram insurgency and other identical challenges that confront them.

The envoy spoke in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during the 4th Biennial International Conference, organised by the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin. The theme of the conference was, "Rethinking strategic for national and regional security, peace and development."

He said, "In the case of illegal importation of small arms and light weapons, there is even more need for cooperation and coordination by the Customs, Immigration, Police and other security agencies, as these weapons move from country to country through West Africa's porous borders and are used to perpetrate all sorts of heinous crimes."

Laseinde also said it was needful for the Federal Government to license both Christian and Muslim preachers as a way to stop false preaching and fundamentalist views which he noted could lead to terrorism and violence.

He said, "Documentation of strangers and licensing of preachers (both Muslims and Christians) will prevent the condition which allows all sorts of people, without adequate knowledge, to take to preaching to masses and converting them to lean towards anti-social behaviour."

The envoy also said that other African countries apart from Nigeria, Niger, Benin Republic, Cameroon and Chad, which were currently affected by the Boko Haram insurgency, should also align and coordinate military operations.

According to him, it is by working together and sharing intelligence as well as coordinating military operations that insurgency and cross-border crimes could be effectively addressed. He said to deal with terrorism effectively, "there is the need for both the stick and carrot approach."

He said the affected governments should address the concerns of the vulnerable segment of the population especially the unemployed youths, by adopting measures that would reduce the attractiveness of terrorist organisations to such vulnerable groups.

Laseinde added, "As long as the government allows free-for-all (unchecked) preaching by some of those who call themselves religious scholars, there will always be the tendency for a few militant preachers with fundamentalist views to interpret their religions in such a way as to create discord between the government and the people on one hand and between different religious groups on the other."