NIGERIA AND THE SECURITY CHALLENGE
Aliyu Tanimu canvasses need to strengthen our porous borders
The activities of kidnapping for ransom have reared their ugly head, this time in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve city and arguably Africa’s tech hub. Lagos State hosts numerous multinational companies, including Microsoft, Google, MTN, and Netflix, as well as foreign embassies and consulates. No state has more millionaires and billionaires than Lagos. It boasts the largest foreign direct investment and internally generated revenue in Nigeria. Lagos is the lifewire and the purse of the nation. Kidnapping has no place in Lagos and Nigeria as a whole. If kidnapping is allowed in Lagos, foreign investment will opt out of the state, and multinational companies will close their offices due to the fear of being kidnapped. To allay these fears, the government has to be proactive, and citizens have a significant role to play by providing information to security agencies.
Sadly, Lagos has now joined the league of states grappling with kidnapping. Kidnapping for ransom is a lucrative business and a new goldmine for frustrated youths who were deprived of a quality education and remain illiterate. It has become Nigeria’s cankerworm.
For years, Northern Nigeria has been grappling with kidnapping for ransom and terrorism. It started in Zamfara before spreading to other states. They said, “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” We have to learn from historical facts that nations that fail to invest in and empower their youth are inviting anarchy. Check the human development index; we are at the bottom. Our brightest minds are disillusioned about the country’s future; hence, there is a mass exodus to Asia, Europe, and America. The net benefits of human capital flight for the receiving country are sometimes referred to as a ‘brain gain,’ whereas the net costs for the sending country are sometimes referred to as a ‘brain drain.
Many of those conscripted or lured by terrorists and other non-state actors are in their teens and early thirties, indicating that the system has failed those within that age bracket. Instead of producing world-class scientists, engineers, and laureates, we are breeding terrorists and bandits.
The resultant effect of failing to invest in and empower the youth is that we may need to seek international peacekeepers’ help, as Haiti did, to quell and contain gang violence and other security threats. Alternatively, we might have to increase our security budget, redirecting funds from education, infrastructure, and healthcare allocations to address the security challenge.
Let’s refresh our memories and go back to July 30, 2009, when Late Muhammad Yusuf, a hardliner and leader of Boko Haram, was killed in an extrajudicial killing during the Boko Haram uprising in Maiduguri. After his demise, a new leader emerged, this time more brutal: Abubakar Shekau. Abubakar Shekau gained notoriety for his carnage and massacres until he killed himself after a gun duel with a rival terrorist group, ISWAP. During his reign, Boko Haram spread its carnage beyond Maiduguri’s borders to all of northern Nigeria, killing thousands, taking girls hostage, and marrying them off against their will. Boko Haram festered during former President Goodluck Jonathan’s time. Buhari, the immediate past President, inherited the Boko Haram menace. He managed to decimate the group, but a new threat emerged in the form of banditry, which he passed down to the current President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Some of the bandits’ modus operandi are not dissimilar to Boko Haram and ISWAP, who kill, maim, dislodge, and ransack communities, kidnapping schoolgirls to attract both external and internal attention. Most of the foot soldiers are stark illiterates with little to no Islamic education, let alone Western education. Some are herders who lost their cattle to cattle rustlers and armed themselves against the state
Bandits controlled mining sites in Zamfara, as well as a large expanse of land in Zamfara, Niger, and Sokoto. They functioned as a de facto government, imposing tax levies on the communities they controlled and kidnapping both men and women, rich and poor, old and young. Now, they even have the audacity and temerity to collect royalties from mining companies in exchange for safety guarantees. They have been allowed to act with impunity and treated with kid gloves.
Recently, the troops dealt a severe blow to the bandits in Zamfara, resulting in the deaths of hundreds. The momentum should be sustained by taking the battle to their doorstep.
The bandits have become so emboldened that they attack and kill military personnel and formations. As I said earlier, some of the bandits’ modus operandi are not dissimilar to Boko Haram and ISWAP, which kill, maim, dislodge, and ransack communities, kidnapping schoolgirls to attract both external and internal attention. However, there is no justification for their actions. Zamfara used to be the epicenter for the bandits before spreading to other northern states. The bandits have amassed billions through illicit trade of human-like commodities in the market, untraced because the ransom money is unbanked.
The origins of the bandit conflict can be traced back to herder-farmer conflicts that have plagued Northern Nigeria for decades, particularly between the Fulani and Hausa and other minority tribes. Climate change has exacerbated the conflict as the movement of cattle to arable land for hay and water has led to conflicts between herders and settlers. It’s safe to say that most of the bandit foot soldiers are from the Fulani ethnic group, but some criminal elements and terrorist organizations have infiltrated and exploited the conflict to their advantage. In Kaduna State, the Birnin Gwari axis has been infiltrated by ISWAP, luring and indoctrinating young people into their fold. If something is not done, the Birnin Gwari axis could become another Sambisa forest in Kaduna State.
The inevitable teething problem arises when the battle against them is won. My immediate concern and worry are, what will we do with the thousands of youths hired as vigilantes to help fight against bandits in Kaduna and Katsina once we eventually win the battle against the bandits? Are we going to absorb them into our military or what? We should learn a lesson from Russia’s Wagner Group mutiny against the Russian Federation.
Banditry, terrorism, separatism, and kidnapping carry significant economic implications. Farmers have forsaken their fields, exacerbating food insecurity and hindering our quest for food self-sufficiency. Furthermore, businesses are relocating abroad, leading to economic stagnation and increased poverty, among other consequences. This demonstrates a substantial adverse impact of armed banditry on poverty, unemployment, food security, education, resident displacement, healthcare, income, and the overall standard of living in the state. It also disrupts various other socio-economic activities in the affected regions, including resident displacement, hefty ransom payments, and livelihood abandonment, resulting in food shortages and significant price increases for certain food commodities.
Banditry and kidnapping have resulted in loss of lives, financial setbacks due to ransom payments, forced closures of businesses and schools, and restrictions on farming as the primary socio-economic consequences of kidnapping in the state grappling with kidnapping and banditry. Agriculture remains the cornerstone of the Northern economy, but insecurity has led to poor yields, contributing to the astronomical surge in food prices.
Also, we are witnessing an uptick in violence in the South East of Nigeria. The IPOB has recently stepped up their attacks against the military. Simon Ekpa, the self-proclaimed leader of the proscribed IPOB separatist group, resides in Finland as their leader, while Nnamdi Kalu is still in detention. Ekpa commands a huge cult following because he can tap into the minds of average, gullible Nigerians overtly and appeal to their subconscious minds to join them in their quest for self-determination and the liberation of their region. The youth fail to realize that they are destroying their region while he comfortably resides in far-off Europe, enjoying their social amenities and securing his children’s future. The misinformation and propaganda message should be controlled, and the government must begin to heal the wounds of the civil war. Engaging the youth in human capital development in the region is the only sustainable solution to the insecurity in the region.
A nation is only as secure as its borders; secure borders are essential for a safe nation. We must make substantial investments in strengthening our porous border security. Illegal, small, and lightweight weapons are being trafficked across our borders, and these dangerous arms ultimately end up in the hands of bandits, kidnappers, and other organized criminal syndicates. What we are witnessing is the aftermath of the deposition and killing of the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi. The arms and ammunition sent to the rebels during the uprising are now being sold like commodities after his overthrow.
We have approximately 1,800 land borders across 4,047 kilometers, covering four different countries: Cameroon, Chad, Benin Republic, and Niger Republic. We cannot effectively fight insecurity if we don’t take control of our borders to stem the flow of arms and ammunition. Our borders should be automated, in addition to the physical presence of personnel. The use of drones, night vision goggles, facial recognition software, CCTV, and other clandestine security gadgets will not only promote efficiency but also improve service delivery.
In conclusion, Nigeria faces a multifaceted security crisis that encompasses kidnapping, banditry, terrorism, and separatism. These challenges not only threaten the lives and well-being of its citizens but also have significant economic and social consequences. It is imperative that the government takes decisive action to address these issues comprehensively.
To combat these security threats, investment in youth empowerment and development is vital. This investment includes access to quality education, job opportunities, and the provision of skills that empower young people to build a brighter future for themselves and their country. It is essential to break the cycle that drives frustrated youths towards criminal activities and extremist ideologies.
Arc. Tanimu writes from Kaduna
