From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
In light of ongoing insecurity in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, Dr. Sam Amadi, a notable political analyst and Director of the Abuja School of Social and Political Thought (TASSPT) has raised concerns and called for African leaders to prioritise strategies for combating the menace.
The Political Analyst, highlighted the importance of addressing the root causes of terrorism, such as poverty, political instability, and social marginalization, adding that there is the need to pay more attention to insecurity due to its impact on livelihood and democracy.
Amadi, stated the critical need for governments to focus on resolving internal grievances to prevent these groups from being recruited by terrorist organisations operating across the region.
This call to action was made during a policy dialogue organised by TASSPT in Abuja recently, focusing on the effectiveness of counter-terrorism efforts in defending democracy in the region.
The event, themed “Appraising the success of counter-terrorism measures in the defense of democracy in West Africa,” aimed to foster awareness, exchange insights, and suggest viable solutions to confront the escalating threat.
Amadi noted that despite existing counter-terrorism efforts at various levels, terrorism activities appear to be spreading across the sub-region.
He stressed the need for a comprehensive approach, stating that “terrorism is a complex phenomenon that requires a multifaceted strategy.”
He said: “There are a lot of counter-terrorism measures at the level of states, national, regional and continental levels. The Africa Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) are equally involved, yet they have not been very effective.
“There is the need for the government to be proactive, engage stakeholders and develop capacity for persuasion and augmentation.
“Government needs to develop a working state that has the capacity to aggregate ideas and commit citizens to a pursuit of the public good.”
“If we can develop more capability to reinforce kinetic force with the capacity of the state to be more persuasive and efficient, terrorism and insecurity crisis in Africa will reduce
“Government needs to do more, not just to police, but to be analytic and get the experts to sit together from time to time to examine, review, develop and deploy more effective strategies to address the problem of insecurity,” he said.
During the discussions, the convener, Geo-politics Series, Mr Senator Iroegbu, advised the authorities within West Africa to look beyond deployment of military to tackle insecurity.
Iroegbu also advised governments at all levels to prioritise good governance, credible electoral process, inclusivity and ease of doing business in addressing insecurity.
This, according to him, is due to the strong link among security, democracy and development.
“When there is high crime in any society and people are available to be recruited by criminal elements, by terrorist organisations, then it becomes more difficult for states to deal with such problems.
“This is what is happening in the Sahel region, which now has turned into the headquarters of terrorism,’’ he said.
Also speaking, Mr. Ayolande Fagbemi, former Director of the Centre for Peace Building and Socio-Economic Resources Development (CePSER), expressed concerns about the escalating insecurity posing a threat to democracy in West Africa.
According to Fagbemi, democracy faces growing challenges from internal power struggles aiming to capture the state, often exploiting ethnic and class divisions.
He emphasised the urgent need to reinforce law enforcement, security measures, and criminal justice systems to ensure they are impartial and do not favour criminals or those committing unlawful acts.