Insecurity: Nigerians as endangered specie

 

Introduction

Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria says security and welfare of the citizens shall be the primary purpose of government. In 2024, neither of these two are being enjoyed by Nigerians. Compatriots feel unsafe in their own country and as for welfare, it’s a case of what legendary Afrobeat musician, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti call “Suffering and smiling”. Once upon a time, armed robbery, kidnapping and other crimes were largely restricted to the urban centres with many promising to run and hide in their villages from night marauders and criminals. Sadly, nowhere is safe any longer. The grassroot, I mean people in the communities, are facing so much unrest from criminal elements that they are now leaving their ancestral land in droves to seek refuge in towns and cities that have no succour for them.

Truth be told, Nigeria is fast sliding to what the great political philosopher, Thomas Hobbes described in his 1651 famous book titled Leviathan where he said that in the State of Nature  life is solitary, poor, nasty brutish and short. Most Nigerians feel endangered. We all live day-by-day. Just as ordinary citizens are not safe from the rampaging bloodsuckers, even the high and mighty are vulnerable. On Monday, January 29, 2024 dare-devil gunmen killed two traditional rulers in Ekiti State like fowl. The bandit killed the Onimojo of Imojo in the Oye Local Government Area, Oba Olatunde Olusola, and the Elesun of Esun Ekiti in the Ikole Local Government Area, Oba Babatunde Ogunsakin, while the Alara of Ara Ekiti, Oba Adebayo Fatoba in the Ikole Local Government Area, escaped.

Sources said the traditional rulers were returning from a function in Kogi State when their vehicles ran into the suspected kidnappers, who had laid an ambush on the road. Same day, five pupils and four staff of Apostolic Faith Group of Schools, Emure Ekiti were kidnapped on their way from the school in another community - Eporo Ekiti.

 

Heart rending statistics

Last week, civil society groups, under the aegis of the Civil Society Joint Action Group, said 17,469 Nigerians were abducted under the Muhammadu Buhari and Bola Tinubu administrations from 2019 to date. Speaking on behalf of the group, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative and Advocacy Centre, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said insecurity had persisted over the last three administrations, with 24,816 Nigerians killed and 15,597 persons abducted in the last administration of President Buhari, between 2019 and 2023. Out of the total number of 17, 469 kidnapped from 2019 and to date, 90 per cent of the cases were recorded under Buhari, while 10 per cent have been recorded under Tinubu.

Recall that unknown gunmen on 2023 Christmas Eve attacked 25 communities in three local government areas of Plateau State, killing over 150 people and razing about 221 houses. The attacks, which affected Barkin Ladi, Bokkos and Mangu LGAs, led to the displacement of over 10,000 residents of the attacked communities. There have been several other attacks on the Plateau thereafter with the most recent one being in some communities in Mangu Local Government. Similar attacks have been recorded in Agatu Local Government of Benue State.

The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) is a comprehensive study analysing the impact of terrorism for 163 countries covering 99.7 per cent of the world’s population. The GTI report is produced by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) using data from Terrorism Tracker and other sources. The GTI report of 2022 ranked Nigeria eight with a score of 8.065. GTI is a composite measure made up of four indicators: incidents, fatalities, injuries and hostages. Nigeria’s position is very depressing!

Triggers of insecurity

Research has shown that there are many triggers of insecurity ranging from Ungoverned spaces; Porous borders; Poverty; Unemployment; Ostentatious lifestyle and corrupt practices on the part of our leaders. There are swaths of land and communities without any semblance of governance and security. Bandits have take over such spaces. There are over 1,400 illegal entry and exit routes from Nigeria according to the Nigerian Immigration Services. Nothing has been done with the much touted e-border surveillance project of the federal government. The porosity of our borders makes it possible for unhindered smuggling of small arms and light weapons, hard drugs and human trafficking. Unemployment in Nigeria is above 30 per cent while poverty rate even by official figures is very high. Corruption and embezzlement of public funds, including that of resources meant to buy arms and ammunition have further compounded insecurity in Nigeria. News report has it that the $2.1 billion meant for procurement of weapons to fight insurgency under the administration of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was mismanaged in what has become ‘Dasukigate’.

Impact of terrorism and general insecurity on Nigeria

The economy of Nigeria has been most impacted negatively. Many highly skilled people have either died or suffered permanent disability as a result of the widespread insecurity. Many have been displaced and now depend on friends, family members and government for their daily survival. These are people who previously have means of livelihood and could cater for themselves. Many micro, small and medium enterprises have shut down. Indeed, many big companies are divesting from Nigeria and relocating elsewhere where they could do business in relative peace and safety. The major business booming in Nigeria now is for those that sell security gadgets of all sorts including bullet proof vehicles, doors and other accessories. These are things ordinary Nigerians cannot afford.

Hundreds of thousands of Nigerians are resigning from their plum jobs and voting with their feet in what is called ‘Japa’ phenomenon. Socially, many Nigerians are now under self-imposed curfew. No more night life. Churches and even mosques have had to cancel vigils while many congregants are also afraid to attend worship services and programmes even during the day. Night life is almost gone while those who organise social events or parties no longer do till-day-break, preferring to end their parties around 6pm so guests can be safely back to the comfort of their homes before nightfall.

Medically speaking many Nigerians have a feeling of being under siege and are suffering panic attacks. Many are hypertensive and have developed stroke and heart attacks due to too much fear. Medical facilities have also been target of attacks and health and medical workers have been kidnapped either for ransom or to serve as medical personnel for bandits in their den or enclave.

Government’s response

Federal government and indeed many state governments have exponentially increased their security and defence budgets. In fact, governors across board are collecting huge security votes that leaves many to wander why this hasn’t translated to better security for the citizens. Many states are establishing vigilante groups with the latest being Zamfara State. Last Wednesday, January 31, 2024, Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State, inaugurated a 2,969-man State Community Protection Guards to tackle the insecurity challenges affecting the state. Recall that in 2020, the six South West States of Lagos, Osun, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo and Ekiti States Houses of Assembly passed the South-West Security Network (Amotekun) Bill into law. The Corps has been in operation since then with modest success recorded in the fight against crimes and criminality.  

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, on Wednesday, January 17, 2024 inaugurated a Special Intervention Squad (SIS) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to address the increasing rate of crime in the territory. Speaking at the inauguration ceremony in Abuja, Mr Egbetokun said the squad was made up of trained, well-equipped and highly mobile police officers. According to him, the squad possesses the capacity for rapid intervention and effective containment of significant security breaches like those currently threatening the suburb of the FCT.

The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Saturday, January 13, 2024 revealed a plan by President Bola Tinubu towards the establishment of the marine police, solid mineral police and better-trained forest guards. In a message he posted on X (formerly Twitter), Onanuga said Tinubu, at a meeting in Abuja on Friday, January 12 with governors of the All Progressives Congress, revealed his plans to rejig Nigeria’s security architecture. Onanuga wrote, “He (Tinubu) mentioned three brand new police formations, to augment the regular police. He said the deployment of forest guards was being considered, with better training, modern technological gadgets and weapons to strengthen security.”

PDP Governors request for State Police

Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, on Thursday, February 1, 2024 lamented the security challenges facing the country. They insisted that for the nation to overcome the challenge, the present police structure must be decentralised to give way to the establishment of state police across the country The PDP governors spoke in Jos, Plateau State capital when they visited the Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang at the Rayfield Government House. The visit follows the series of attacks and killings by gunmen in the state which had reportedly claimed over 200 lives in the past month with properties worth millions of naira destroyed in various communities of the state.

Conclusion

I am of the considered view that State Police is an idea whose time has come and President Tinubu should not waste more time before sponsoring an Executive Bill for constitutional amendment to sections 214 and 215 of the Nigerian Constitution in order to pave way for State Police. There is already State High Court, State Prison, State Road Traffic Management Agency. Much as the fear of abuse of state police is genuine, the courts will be there for people to seek redress. Already, even the federal police is being abused. Security and Defence should therefore be moved from Exclusive Legislative list  to concurrent legislative list with each state to determine when to establish their own state police. The current insecurity challenge should also be fought with technological gadgets such as CCTV, drones, scanners, jammers, etc. Intelligence gathering should be prioritised with more security personnel recruited and properly trained and motivated. With the establishment of Police Equipment Trust Fund, Nigerian Police should be better resourced for optimum performance.

This article was first published in THISDAY newspaper of Tuesday, February 6, 2024