The worrisome spate of insecurity in recent times prompted President Bola Tinubu to meet with service chiefs and other heads of security agencies recently in Abuja. The President had also noted that there would be no rest until those he called the agents of darkness were eliminated. While we commend the President for his actions so far, we wish to note that defeating terrorism and kidnapping has gone beyond mere talk and threats.
Scores of Nigerians have been abducted of recent. One of the most heart-rending episodes happened on January 9, 2024. Kidnappers abducted six sisters and their father from their home in Abuja. Not quite long after, they released the father and instructed him to raise N60 million as ransom before Friday, January 12. When the man failed to raise the amount demanded, they killed one of the sisters, Nabeeha, and dumped her body along Abuja-Kaduna road. Nabeeha was a 400 level student of Biological Science at Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.
The terrorists also killed 13-year-old Folashade, the daughter of an Abuja-based lawyer, Oladosu Ariyo. Mr. Ariyo reportedly could not raise the N60 million the abductors demanded when they kidnapped his wife and four children from their house in Abuja on January 14. Earlier in the month, no fewer than 85 people were reported to have been kidnapped by terrorists near Katari, along Kaduna-Abuja highway, in Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
Before the current cases, Abuja used to be secure. Kidnap incidents occurred mostly in such states as Borno, Katsina, Kaduna, Niger and Zamfara. Victims were either travellers or students. In April 2014, about 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped from their school in Chibok, Borno State. Over 100 of them were rescued after a few years in captivity. Some are yet to be released. In February 2018, the Boko Haram insurgents abducted 110 schoolgirls from their school in Dapchi, Yobe State. After months in captivity, they released 105 of them and still held Leah Sharibu in captivity up until date because she refused to denounce Christianity. Four of the girls died in captivity. In December 2020, over 300 students of Government Science Secondary School Kankara in Katsina State were abducted and taken to a forest in Zamfara State. They were released after six days in captivity. Bandits also abducted some students of Government Science School Kagara in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State in 2021. Many more abductions were to follow and no serious efforts were made by the previous administration to arrest the situation. This was despite assurances by the Muhammadu Buhari administration to combat the evil menace.
On assumption of office, President Tinubu also promised to tackle insecurity. So far, we have not seen concrete evidence to support the promise. Rather, terrorism and kidnapping appear to have taken a more dangerous trend. The recent killings in Plateau State illustrate that fact. The worst is that the Federal Capital Territory, which should be the most secure part of Nigeria, appears to be very porous now. Terrorists and kidnappers waylay residents at will and nothing happens.
It is pertinent to note that Abuja houses the diplomatic community and it is the backbone of the Federal Government. Whatever happens in Abuja will have a ripple effect on the entire nation. The most sought-after investors will not come if the capital of the country is not safe.
Hence, we commend the summoning of the security chiefs to proffer solutions to the problem. But tackling the menace goes beyond summoning the security chiefs and issuing orders. Something concrete must be done to ensure that kidnappers do not infiltrate Abuja and that they are routed wherever they already operate from.
We have hammered enough about intelligence sharing among security agencies. Kidnappers and terrorists move in large numbers to where they operate. Through intelligence, security agents should be able to track their movements and nip their evil plots in the bud before they strike.
Part of the problem is that some of the security agents may have been compromised. Efforts should be made to track the blacklegs among them and punish them according to the laws of the land.
We wish to emphasise that acquiring modern, sophisticated weapons should not be toyed with. Our security agencies should be able to take the war to the enclave of these terrorists and eliminate them as soon as possible. Waiting for them to strike before we act will be counter-productive.
Security agencies should check the proliferation of illegal arms and ammunition in the country. About six million small arms are said to be in the hands of non-state actors. About 178,459 different types of ammunition reportedly got missing from the Nigerian police amoury in 2019. Past efforts to mop up these illegal arms had not yielded much dividend.
The service chiefs should show in words and actions that they are capable of carrying out the enormous responsibilities thrust on their shoulders. Whoever is seen to have exhibited laxity in his duties should be sacked. We cannot continue to lose precious innocent lives to these evildoers. Tinubu should not just issue orders, he should ensure that his orders are carried out to the fullest. It is time to say enough is enough!