President Bola Tinubu has been described as a veteran captain who would safely land Nigeria from its current turbulent situation.

Sen. George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), said this when the management of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) visited him on Wednesday in Abuja.

The NAN delegation, led by Malam Ali M. Ali, Managing Director of the Agency, includes the Director of Administration, Abdulkadi Khaliel, and the Editor in Chief, Ephraims Sheyin.

The visit aimed to brief Akume on the forthcoming inaugural annual international lecture by NAN on Oct. 3.

The theme of the lecture is ‘Insecurity in the Sahel (2008-2024): Dissecting Nigeria’s Challenges—Genesis, Impacts, and Options’.

The SGF described the state of Nigeria that Tinubu met as a situation being witnessed by a pilot who took off in turbulent weather.

He added that such a pilot must be an experienced type for safer landings, adding that there’s indeed a lot of turbulent situations in the country.

“Tinubu’s government is like a plane that takes off in turbulent weather, but when a plane takes off in turbulent weather, it’s not easy to control.

“But when you have a pilot who is very skilled, he knows where he is going; he knows there’s a problem, but the problem is his landing; yes, he will land us safely; that’s why he is a veteran captain,” he said.

While describing NAN’s forthcoming lecture as a ‘wonderful initiative’, Akume said media sectors have critical  roles to play in disseminating information on government’s policies and programmes to educate the public.

“This is a very wonderful initiative. There is no way you can do any meaningful and purposeful summit and conference in this country now without having a very rich content of security.

“And for those of you in the media, you have a critical role to play, and that’s why your forthcoming lecture is one of these roles you are playing to disseminate this information through such initiative about government’s policy. “

The SGF explained that security architecture had been redesigned by the present administration, adding that things have started picking up gradually in the country.

Speaking earlier, Ali lauded Akume for the tremendous achievements recorded by his office since the inception of the present administration.

Ali said that the lecture was imperative looking at Nigeria’s state of insecurity and NAN’s position of disseminating news wider across the international level.

“We are here to intimate you of our impending first international lecture organised by the News Agency of Nigeria.

“We are here to let you know first hand and also to invite you formally,” he said.

While speaking on the choice of the topic, Ali said NAN management was looking at the state of insecurity, as not only a disturbing issue in Nigeria but within the Sahel region.

“Actually we are looking at insecurity in the Sahel region, and that’s why it is an international lecture.

“The insecurity is becoming a serious issue, and we restricted it between 2008 and 2024 as part of the national effort to enliven public discourse on the debilitating challenges of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping for ransom, and militancy, among others,” he said.

He used the visit to laud the efforts of Tinubu’s government on its commitment to fight the insecurity by equipping the Nigerian Armed Forces to curb the ugly situation across the country.

“So, we are looking at all of these, beyond the shores of Nigeria.

“We are convinced at the editorial board of the News Agency of Nigeria to look at this beyond Nigeria at the Sahel region, which has remained a hotbed of crisis,” Ali said. (NAN)