Nigerians at various parts of the country have, in the last decades, been through a roller coaster of emotions as a result of the activities of various terror groups.
Many residents in the Northeastern parts have been faced with the ugly activities of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists, forcing deaths and displacements on their loved ones. Also, banditry attacks are wreaking havoc in the Northwest and Northcentral.
There have also been cases of killings fuelled by the separatist militant group known as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the Southeast. While the Southwest region is facing a farmers-herders crisis, South-south states are battling with a land boundary crisis.
According to a report by Nigeria Security Tracker (NST), a project of the Council on Foreign Relations Africa program that documents and maps violence in Nigeria using newspaper reports and family sources, no fewer than 87,455 people were killed in various violent attacks across Nigeria between 2011 and 2022.
Kidnapping for ransom has also become a major challenge. Reports have it that an estimated $18.34 million was paid to kidnappers as ransom between June 2011 and March 2020.
Aside from threatening the safety of citizens, insecurity also hinders economic growth and development.
Call for self-help
In a bid to tackle the menace, Kabir Marafa, a Senator representing Zamfara Central Senatorial District, in 2018 asked the Federal Government to liberalize gun control for self-defense, saying that the only advantage criminals have against citizens is the possession of arms.
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State also said this at the first anniversary of the re-establishment of the Ministry of Police Affairs in 2020.
“Nigerians must wake up in order not to be consumed by insecurity. I heard people complaining that Ortom called for Nigerians to be allowed to carry sophisticated weapons and that it would bring about anarchy,” the Governor had said.
“What about the herdsmen carrying AK-47 and kidnapping innocent Nigerians, raping our women and destroying our villages and towns, and becoming a terror to us? How about them? Why can’t we collect these sophisticated weapons from them? How many of them have been arrested?”
Also, Zamfara State Government had recently told the police to issue firearm licenses “to all those who qualify and are wishing to obtain guns to defend themselves.”
Hudu Yahaya, a spokesman for governor Bello Matawalle, said on his Facebook page that the order would help “to deal with the recent escalating attacks, kidnapping and the criminal levies being enforced on innocent communities by terrorists.”
But Battabox understands that allowing residents to carry firearms may lead to extra judicial killings of innocents as members of a vigilante group known as Yan Sakai in the Northwest are already enmeshed in extra-judicial murder of Fulanis because of their ethnic affiliation of the terrorists.
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Will N2.74 trillion budgeted for security help?
Meanwhile, The Nigerian government has approved N2.74tn budget for security in the 2023 Appropriation budget. This amount totals N21,827,188,747,391 if converted to United States dollars.
But the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Defence, Babajimi Benson, said the amount is inadequate.
“As you are aware, the 2023 budget was signed yesterday. Of course, it is about N21tn and 13 percent of it was earmarked for the Defence sector, which came to about N2.74tn. Yes, the money is huge. In fairness, you must continue to spend (on security). Show me a prosperous nation, you will see that security in that country is very high. The budget, though huge in naira terms; converting the money to dollars makes it a bit insignificant.
“You must also be aware that personnel and other costs…the Armed Forces is one of the agencies in the world that take care of you from when you join (them) till when you die. There is nothing that you buy from your pocket. Even your burial is taken over by the Nigerian Armed Forces. So, Mr President, in his kind wisdom, signed what we call the MAFA (Manual of Financial Administration) which is an enhancement of the welfare of men in service. These are our brothers and sisters who put their lives on the line to make us secure.”
However, Battabox understands that funds allocated for the security sector, have over the years not been properly accounted for.
Recall that former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, was arraigned for allegedly diverting $2.1 billion meant for arms procurement to fund the 2015 elections. Also, a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the forfeiture of properties belonging to a former Chief of Air Staff, the late Alex Badeh, who was prosecuted in a N3.9 billion fraud case.
In 2021, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission charged a former Chief of Army Staff, Kenneth Minimah, and two other generals for the alleged misappropriation of N13 billion meant for arms purchase. The development occurred a year after a former officer, Hakeem Otiki, was found guilty of corruption charges which included theft of public property and diversion of operational money.
Also, the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, Bolaji Owasanoye, in September 2022, said an ex-military chief stole N4 billion from the military budget, diverting it to two companies, where he is the sole signatory.
As cases of corruption in the security sector increase, soldiers are left to combat terrorists with little or no sophisticated weapons.
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Way forward
A Nigeria researcher at Human Rights Watch, Anietie Ewang, has urged the federal government to ensure security measures are in place to keep citizens safe, pursue the attackers, and bring those responsible to account in accordance with human rights laws.
“Anything short of this will spur more grievances against the government, which may worsen an already tense situation and fuel additional cycles of violence.”
He stressed that there is a need to end the culture of corruption in the ranks of the military.
AdvoKC Foundation also maintained that Nigeria’s next president must focus on improving security by increasing funding for security agencies.
“Government should improve intelligence gathering, addressing the root causes of insecurity, investing in community policing, improving the justice system, implementing a comprehensive national security strategy, collaborating with other countries, engaging with communities, increasing transparency and accountability, and encouraging public participation in the fight against insecurity.”
