President Bola Tinubu convened a series of high-level security meetings on Monday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, including a confidential session with Chief of Defence Staff General Olufemi Oluyede and a visiting French military officer.
According to presidency insiders who requested anonymity, the discussions formed part of ongoing efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture. The French general’s identity was not disclosed by any of the sources consulted.
Separately, Tinubu also convened an emergency gathering of the country’s top security officials. Senior military and intelligence figures present included the chiefs of the Army, Navy, and Air Staff, the heads of the Department of State Services and the National Intelligence Agency, as well as the Inspector-General of Police.
The flurry of security activity followed a deadly attack in Borno State on Sunday, in which insurgents using an Improvised Explosive Device killed a colonel and six soldiers — the latest in a string of strikes against military personnel operating in the North-East.
The session with the French officer, which got underway at approximately 2 pm, marked Tinubu’s first official engagement since returning from Bayelsa the previous Friday. It took place roughly three weeks after he publicly announced that France had committed to providing military hardware and training to Nigerian forces engaged in counterinsurgency operations in the region.
A presidential source told reporters: “He has always said that he will seek collaboration and support from everywhere he can get help — and he is doing that. He is on top of the security issues.”
A second official corroborated the account, confirming only that the President met with the CDS alongside the French General and describing it as a private meeting.
