Insecurity: Defence minister proposes technology-driven tollgates on major highways

The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has proposed the return of tollgates on major highways, saying modern technology could make them useful tools for monitoring movements and tackling criminal activities.

Musa argued that automated toll systems would enable security agencies to capture vehicle registration details, monitor traffic along interstate routes and trace suspects without relying on cash-based transactions.

In a statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Leah Katung-Babatunde, the minister described the removal and demolition of tollgates across the country as a security setback.

He made the proposal while speaking at the Abuja Round Table, themed Promise to Proof: The Renewed Hope Conversation. He participated in a session examining ways to protect lives and livelihoods and make communities safer for farming, travelling and commercial activities.

“With modern Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and automation, toll collection no longer requires cash transactions. Automated systems can instantly capture vehicle registration numbers, track vehicular movements across interstate corridors, and seamlessly trace or apprehend suspects,” he said.

Although acknowledging that tollgates had been associated with abuses in the past, Musa maintained that automated systems could address such problems and strengthen their usefulness in crime prevention.

The defence minister also advocated a more effective national identification framework, proposing the integration of unique identification numbers with facial recognition and biometric records to improve identity verification.

He said a centralised digital database would help security agencies identify individuals more accurately, address gaps in existing records and improve the gathering of intelligence.

On the military’s involvement in domestic security, Musa explained that the Armed Forces were primarily responsible for protecting the country’s territorial integrity but could assist the police when security threats became too difficult for them to manage.

He, however, raised concerns about the prolonged deployment of soldiers for internal security operations, noting that extended assignments had kept many personnel away from their families for years.

“Our troops have spent years deployed across regions such as the North-west, away from their families and loved ones,” he said.

Musa said efforts were being made to improve police recruitment, training and operational capabilities, with the aim of enabling the force to take greater responsibility for internal security.

He explained that strengthening the police would allow the military to gradually withdraw from domestic deployments and return to its primary responsibility of defending the country.

The minister also identified national disunity as a major obstacle to addressing insecurity, arguing that Nigeria’s challenges went beyond the availability of military equipment and financial resources.