Again, some eminent Nigerians have called on the federal government to seek external assistance and mobilizing retired Army Generals in tackling the worsening security challenges in the country. They believe that throwing billions of naira at the problem in the name of non-kinetic solution has never worked in the past and may not achieve the desired results.
By Goddy Ikeh
DESPITE the pledge made by President Bola Tinubu that he would prioritise security and effectively tackle the menace of insecurity, more than 600 persons had died as a result of insecurity between May 29 and July 13, 2023 of his administration.
Delivering his inaugural speech as President on Monday, May 29, 2023 at Eagle Square in Abuja, Tinubu outlined the key initiatives to be anticipated from his administration and pledged to prioritise security and effectively tackle the menace of insecurity.
“Security shall be the top priority of our administration because neither prosperity nor justice can prevail amidst insecurity and violence. To effectively tackle this menace, we shall reform our security doctrine and its architecture. We shall invest more in our security personnel, and this means more than an increase in number. We shall provide better training, equipment, pay and firepower,” Tinubu said.
Unfortunately, killings by non-state actors have continued unabated in many places in Nigeria several weeks into President Bola Tinubu’s administration, according to reports by the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, ICIR.
The report said that the killings happened primarily from activities of bandits, Boko Haram insurgents, ethnic militias, armed robbers and other non-state actors.
In addition, more than 521 persons had been killed by terrorists, bandits and other criminal elements between July 1 and October 6, 2023. According to local media reports, there is hardly a day that passes without reports of gruesome killings of Nigerians. For instance, in October 2023, no fewer than 14 persons lost their lives in attacks by gunmen in just six days, while in September, 71 persons were killed; 216 deaths in August and 219 persons were killed in July 2023.
Following the rising cases of insecurity, millions of Nigerians have come to accept the daily killings of their fellow compatriots as the new way of life since the government, whose constitutional role is the protection of lives and properties of the citizens has failed them and has continued to do so even in the face of mounting insecurity across the country.
However, some eminent Nigerians, clerics and politicians have appealed to the federal government to do whatever it takes to bring the daily killings to a halt. For instance, the presidential candidate in last year’s general elections under the Labour Party, LP, and former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, has lent his voice in calling on the federal government to conquer the monster of insecurity and stop the killings in the country.
“This constant loss of precious lives to insecurity demands that more concerted efforts be taken to end the menace,” Obi said on his verified X handle. He also called on the federal government and the security agencies to rise up and put an end to the wanton killings in Nigeria.
According to Obi, for the umpteenth time, Nigerians again woke up to the continued reports of highly condemnable acts of violence reoccurring across the country.
Obi, who stated this via his verified X handle, lamented that: “First was the reported killing of about 30 persons in Plateau State, and secondly, the gruesome killing of husband and wife in Anambra State, whose bodies were left in the boot of their vehicle by the roadside, among many other violent crimes that go unreported in our nation.
“While condemning these dastardly and despicable acts in totality, one wonders when we will wake up to the news of this insecurity that has continued to undermine the peace and progress of our country being curtailed.
“This constant loss of precious lives to insecurity demands that more concerted efforts be taken to end the menace.”
Obi pointed out that he would continue to appeal to everyone, the leaders, especially those in office and the security agencies, to strive harder to unravel and bring the perpetrators of crime to book, and continue to make efforts to rid society of crime and violence.
“I condole with the affected families who have lost their loved ones to the raging insecurity in the country, while praying to God to grant eternal rest to the dead. These are very difficult times in our country, but we must conquer this monster of insecurity to be able to enjoy the New Nigeria of our dreams,” Obi added.
The appeal by eminent Nigerians to the government to stop the killings did not start this year. Recall that in the eight years of Buhari’s administration in which 63,111 deaths were recorded as caused by insecurity, such calls were made.
And before the security situation in the country became worse than it is in 2024, Prof Wole Soyinka had called on the federal government to seek help to tackle insecurity in the country and ‘stop the blame trade’. Reacting to the daily killings across the country by bandits, terrorists and other gunmen, the Nobel laureate said that the federal government should seek help where necessary to regain peace in Nigeria and chart the way forward without using Nigerians as victims. According to Prof. Soyinka, these gunmen had sacrificed and traumatised the country’s youths beyond their capacity to cope. Warning at the time that the country was at war and that it was time to stop pretending and that the government should put in more efforts to stop the killings of youths, who are the future of the country.
But Prof Soyinka was not alone in advising the federal government to seek assistance in tackling the security issues in the country. Prof Anya O. Anya, octogenarian and former director general of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group and an elder statesman also warned that most of the challenges confronting the nation in 2020 had not been tackled successfully, especially, the issues of rising insecurity across the country, poor performance of the economy with rising inflation, youth unemployment and the growing appetite for borrowing and its impact on economy. Anya had declared in an interview with Real News in 2023 that Nigeria was at war and that the country was also in denial. “There is nowhere in the world that you have so many people killed each day either by bandits, insurrectionists, or kidnappers or whatever, and you think the society is normal, no way!
“So we are at war, the difference is simply that we are pretending that we don’t know we are at war,” he said.
According to Anya, “what makes it dangerous is that you have the army, you have the police and they are all now in full battle gear. You are dealing with not another army, you are dealing with non-state actors, people, who are not organised and should not be near government, are not even in government, so they are fighting for their own purposes, and what makes it worst is the fact that from what we are now hearing, many of these people are from outside of Nigeria, so, it’s not an internal war, it’s in fact an external war.
On the way out of the current security challenges, Anya said that federal government should “mobilize to meet force with force” and then your first resource will be the army of retired military men from all over the country. They are many generals we retired over the last 20 years and you start from them. “If you can organize the retired military men in all the zones of Nigeria, you have a sizeable army of command sector, then, the chief of defense staff can now coordinate that. Otherwise, pretending that the military as it is now can return us to stability, well we still have time. It may go from bad to worse,” he warned.
He explained that bringing the retired military men and organizing them would bring about quality of military decision making and strategic planning and you have a pool of very experienced people, some of whom have even taken part in the war. You have that resource.
However, some scholars have also joined in analyzing the security issues in the country. According to Ndubuisi-Okolo Purity .U., Ph.D and Theresa Anigbuogu., Ph.D of the Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, Awka, Anambra State, insecurity is a critical issue that has hampered industrialization and sustainable development in Nigeria in particular and Africa at large. Nigeria, which is perceived as the giant of Africa has witnessed an unprecedented incidences of insecurity ranging from the activities of Fulani Herdsmen; Boko Haram Insurgencies, Armed Robber Attacks, kidnapping, political/religious crisis, murder, destruction of oil facilities by Niger Delta militants, Child Abduction/ Trafficking etc.
They stated that other crimes committed by these Islamic sects include; destruction of vehicles; burning of churches, police stations, schools, hospitals, clinics, shops, army barracks and residential houses; abduction of expatriates. These challenges have made security a pivotal issue that has culminated in the allocation of country’s huge meagre resources to the protection of lives and properties.
It has also made government to divert resources meant for developmental purposes to security. Also, the alarming rate at which the economic, political, social and religious affairs of the nation are dwindling at present is a real symptom of insecurity. Similarly, insecurity has threatened insecurity. Similarly, insecurity has threatened the desperate attempt to industrialize, the existing socio-cultural tranquility and sustainable development. Consequent upon this, the Global Peace Index (2012) rated Nigeria low as regards security matters. The implication is that Nigeria symbolizes unsafe place of abode and has also been included among one of the terrorist countries of the world. Therefore, investors, foreigners, expatriate and even indigenes of Nigeria are scared about investing and committing their hard-earned resources in lucrative businesses in Nigeria.
Some of the key economic challenges of insecurity, according to them, include Foreign exchange issues, economic and political instability, security concerns, infrastructure deficiencies, legal and contractual challenges, corruption, market-specific challenges and competitive environment challenges.
Despite these challenges, the scholars stated that foreign investors have not completely shunned Nigeria. According to them, many foreign firms continue to invest in the country, especially in sectors such as telecommunications, banking, and manufacturing.
“The Nigerian government has also made efforts to attract foreign investment by introducing reforms and policies to address some of the issues mentioned above. Additionally, the country’s size, resources, and growing middle class make it an attractive destination for businesses looking to expand into African markets.
“Overall, while Nigeria has immense potential and opportunities, foreign investment decisions are influenced by a complex interplay of factors, including perceptions of risk, market conditions, and government policies. Addressing some of the challenges mentioned above and creating a more conducive business environment can further encourage foreign investment in Nigeria,” they concluded.
Meanwhile, the new administration has appointed new service chiefs to tackle insecurity issues, while declaring security as its “top priority”.
President Tinubu has also approved N50bn security vote for five northern states as part of measures to fight insecurity in the country.
Announcing the approval, Vice President Kahsim Shettima said that the President approved the “Pulaaku Initiative”, a non-kinetic solution to deal with insurgency and banditry in the North and equally allocated the sum of N50bn to the initiative, in its first instance. “Pulaaku” is a Fulani word that loosely means “to be shy”.
Speaking during his opening address at a two-day Roundtable on Insecurity in Northern Nigeria, organised by the Coalition of Northern Groups, with the theme “Multi-Dimensional Approach to Tackling Insecurity in Northern Nigeria”, Shettima, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Hadeija, said the now-approved initiative would begin in five states of the North namely, Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Benue, Zamfara, Niger and Kaduna states, and would “catalyse” the fortunes of the northern region.
“Every part of the country is equal to the rest, and the government treats the needs of each region as critical. For the North, we are also embarking on a transformative journey to address the root causes of the challenges. The Pulaaku Initiative, a non-kinetic solution, has received presidential approval, with an allocation of N50bn in the first instance.
“This initiative aims to enhance living conditions and livelihoods in selected states, starting with Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Benue, Zamfara, Niger and Kaduna. The construction of residences, roads, schools and other essential facilities is set to commence, promising to catalyse the fortunes of this region,” he said.
Perhaps, the federal government should seek other pragmatic approaches in tackling the security challenges, including seeking foreign assistance and avoid throwing money at the problem since it has never solved the challenges of insecurity in the country in the past and may not do so now.
A.
-JANUARY 29, 2024 @ 10:15 GMT|
Tags: Goddy Ikeh President Bola Tinubu Prof Anya O. Anya
