He made it clear that firm action would be needed and that the government must therefore look at the number of men that are available to tackle the armed groups that are currently operating in the hinterland. “We most certainly have more than 20 of these small armies in the hinterland. There are criminals that the police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office have been looking for for more than 15 years”, said MP Atompai who added that the government currently lacks the information and the manpower to take action against the armed structures that are active in the hinterland. The legislator who is also a former police officer explained that some of the wanted criminals have managed to evade capture by the police as they are being protected by well-organized groups that consist of dozens of armed members. “They are protected by groups of 50, 60, 70, 80 well-trained soldiers from other countries”, said MP Atompai who added that statistics show that the army had close to 7,000 soldiers prior to 2020. MP Atompai did not want to discuss the current number of soldiers that are in the army but he made it clear that more recruiters are needed to strengthen the armed forces. He proposed reassigning people who are already working at other departments of the government to the army. “This is something that we must seriously consider. The people who do not go the hinterland have no clue about what is happening there”, said MP Atompai.