The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, has raised concerns about the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated videos, manipulated images, and cloned voices to mislead the public and undermine confidence in the Armed Forces. He warned that these fabricated contents could endanger troops and trigger panic in communities. Oluyede made these remarks at the 2026 conference of the Defence Correspondents Association of Nigeria (DECAN) in Abuja, represented by the Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Samaila Uba.
Oluyede emphasized that modern warfare is no longer determined by firepower alone but also by superior intelligence, technological capabilities, cyber resilience, and control of the information environment. He called on journalists to strengthen their verification processes and work with the military to expose fabricated content. The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (rtd), also spoke at the conference, noting that public understanding of security operations has been shaped largely by visible military action.
However, current threats are increasingly complex, adaptive, and interconnected, with terrorist groups, criminal networks, and other adversaries exploiting information, technology, financial systems, and gaps in coordination to pursue their objectives. The Minister of Defence's Special Adviser, Air Commodore Stephen Ogunmodede (rtd), represented him at the conference. He said the theme addressed an operational reality that the Armed Forces and other security agencies must continually confront.
Former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, clarified that the $1 billion approved by the National Economic Council (NEC) for arms procurement under late President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 was released to the Federal Ministry of Defence, not the Armed Forces. Buratai said not a single dollar of that fund passed through his hands or the accounts of the Nigerian Army, Navy, or Air Force.
Former Senate President Ahmed Lawan called for the budgets of the Nigerian Armed Forces and other security agencies to be placed on first-line charge, saying predictable funding would strengthen Nigeria's fight against insurgency, banditry, and other forms of criminality. Lawan, currently the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Defence, proposed dedicating a percentage of rising national revenues to bulk procurement of platforms and weapons for the military.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, appealed to editors and gatekeepers to weigh public interest against potential harm. He reminded journalists that while conflict inevitably causes collateral damage, the media's role is to convey those realities responsibly in the service of a safer, more secure Nigeria. The DECAN President, Odita Sunday, urged the country to prepare for tomorrow's challenges by investing in intelligence, technology, cybersecurity, human capital, research, and inter-agency cooperation.
The Armed Forces is investing in non-kinetic capabilities, including space-based surveillance, geospatial intelligence, AI-enabled decision support, and joint intelligence fusion, to improve its ability to detect threats and protect national interests. Oluyede warned that emerging technologies could be exploited by hostile actors to spread false narratives about military activities, adding that a single AI-generated video could undo months of operational gains.
Key points
- The Nigerian military is investing in non-kinetic capabilities to improve its ability to detect threats and protect national interests.
- The use of AI-generated videos and manipulated images could undermine confidence in the Armed Forces and endanger troops.
- Predictable funding would strengthen Nigeria's fight against insurgency, banditry, and other forms of criminality.
