U.S, Nigerians fault FG on insecurity after ex-CDS, Gen. Irabor’s call for emergency

The recent debate in the U.S. Congress and the call for declaration of emergency against insurgency seem to underscore public frustration and despair with the lingering security situation in the country. For over 15 years and billions of dollars spent, Nigeria has battled this problem without any definite  direction or end, which leaves many people wondering what is left to do.

In the U.S. Congress a couple of weeks ago, a debate was opened on a motion sponsored by Senator Ted Cruz of Texas on the continuing killings Christians as a result of the persisting insecurity which makes it wear a religious toga and called on the Nigerian government to wake up to its responsibility and protect Christians.

Although the Federal Government was quick to dispel such notion of a religious persecution against Christians, many Nigerians and the international community doubt its commitment to the eradication of insurgency in the country. Most experts including military generals believe that the basic problem with the fight is lack of political will by the government to deal decisively with the perpetrators and their sponsors. For instance, in 2022, the UAE sent a list 400 Boko Haram sponsors to Nigeria but nothing happened. Several military officers involved in intelligence and counter terrorism have confessed of government complicity and lack of action, and even protection of terrorists and their sponsors arrested.

This became very apparent recently when the former Chief of Defense Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, at the public presentation of his book, called for the declaration of emergency against insecurity. Underlying this call is that government is not doing enough, as an emergency condition implies the suspension of basic constitutional rules, and adoption of extra legal means to address the situation.

Reminder of Failure

In  his new book, ‘Scars: Nigeria’s Journey and the Boko Haram Conundrum,’ launched two weeks ago, Gen. Irabor  observed that the lack of political will had  largely constrained  Nigeria’s response to the insurgency and banditry, noting that an emergency proclamation backed by the National Assembly would galvanize  all elements of national power towards ending the war.

Irabor, who served as the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) under the  late Gen.Buhari administration, said , “The government had not yet mustered the political will and instruments to declare a war against Boko Haram. With an emergency proclamation, backed by the National Assembly, there will be greater and more focused attention by the government to galvanize all the elements of national power towards the war.

“It should be noted that strategy deals with the aggregate of the elements of national power. These include economic, political, social, diplomatic, information, and military.

‘’The political authority stands at the apex. The success at the tactical and operational levels will never translate to victory if there is failure at the strategic level. Tactical operations alone rarely bring about the desired outcome in political situations.”

Despite  reports of its degradation by the military following the killing of many of its top commanders and the taking into custody of hundreds of its foot soldiers, Boko Haram’s attacks in the North have intensified recently, causing widespread destruction and displacement.

This also, has been destructively complemented by the audacious persistent attacks, kidnappings and killings by bandits across Northwest and North central, and for the latter, the attacks have become more persistent, spreading to areas not touched before like Kogi, especially Anka/Dekina area and the Okun land , made up of the five Yoruba speaking part of the state, the Barapa, Barute, Kainji and Lafiaji areas of Kwara as well as Igbomina rural side in Kwara.

Three weeks ago, Boko Haram seized the border town of Kirawa in Borno State, forcing thousands to flee to neighbouring Cameroon. The  assault  resulted in the destruction of military barracks, dozens of homes, and the palace of the district head. Over 5,000 people reportedly fled to Cameroon due to the recent attacks.

Fighters also  invaded  an army base in Borno State, killing four soldiers and setting military equipment on fire. A coordinated attack on security formations in Banki was repelled by joint security forces, with one police constable sustaining minor injuries.

More than 2.2 million people remain internally displaced in Nigeria.

Nothing Changes

Stakeholders and Nigerians are worried at the ease with which the groups launch coordinated attacks, stretching security forces thin. Durosimi Adegbade, a retired school principal sharing his take on Irabor’s advice with Business Hallmark said,  “How I wish the government heeded his professional advice,  as former Chief of Defense Staff, he knew what he was saying, the problem of insecurity has reached an alarming proportions but the federal government is not giving it the urgency it requires. Gradually, the problem has reached Kogi and Kwara, it shows that the Southwest is not safe. Why are our politicians playing dice with the lives of people in the name of politics? Because of 2027 elections, the government is playing the ostrich, sad, very sad indeed.”

The continued attacks have compounded humanitarian crisis with many communities without  access to basic necessities.

Professor Jubril Ahmed, a political scientist, said it’s surprising that “two weeks after General Irabor’s call, the federal government has not said a word”, noting that if it were other issues like the activities of the opposition or other irrelevant political matters, you would have seen Bayo Onanuga or other handlers commenting on the matter. This has vindicated Irabor’s statement that the problem of the insecurity is lack of political will to confront it, largely because political actors are allegedly involved.

Reacting to Irabor’s proposal, Brigadier General Peter Aro (retd.)  said the call was timely and apt and borne out of deep operational and strategic experience. He maintained that  a properly declared  emergency backed by legislation would give coherence and urgency to the fight against  insecurity.

Aro  stated, “General Lucky Irabor’s position is both apt and deeply informed by experience. Having served at the operational, strategic, and geo-strategic levels, he speaks with the authority of someone who truly knows his terrain.

“But it must be a genuine state of emergency — not the kind where governors and local government chairmen still operate as if it were business as usual. When politics steps aside and security takes full command, coordination improves, resources flow faster, and the chain of authority becomes clear. Such an approach, free from political interference, would give the military and other agencies the freedom to act with precision and integrity.”

Also backing  Irabor’s standpoint , retired Maj. Gen. Dayo Olukoju  stated that  while a state of emergency was  important, it should be  supported  by a broader, multilateral approach that  speaks to  the root causes of terrorism.

He noted that, “I agree with him. But like I did say, a multilateral approach should be added to it. I was in Maiduguri when we captured one of them, and the terrorist was unrepentant. We have the elite, traditional, spiritual, and military leaders – all of them have roles to play.

“The root causes are there – have we been able to look into them? Those causes include issues of freedom, identity, among others. If these things are not looked into, I hope we don’t have a resurgence. I am not saying the state of emergency can’t work – it’s perfect – but we can go further to do what I have earlier said.”l

The World Bank’s Nigeria Development Update released last week estimates that 139 million Nigerians, about 60 percent of the population, are living below the poverty line.

Experts say the figure, up from 129 million in April 2025, underscores the growing hardship faced by households despite government claims of economic recovery.

But the Presidency was quick to dispute the findings, arguing that the data was based on outdated models that failed to capture Nigeria’s informal economy and recent social intervention programmes.

In a statement released by Sunday Dare, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Public Communication, the government said the World Bank’s figure was “a theoretical construct, not a real-time count of poor Nigerians.”

“It is unrealistic,” Dare wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.

He explained that the estimate was derived from the global poverty benchmark of $2.15 per person per day, set in 2017 using Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). At current exchange rates, that translates to about N100,000 per month, well above the country’s new N70,000 minimum wage, suggesting that the model may not reflect local realities.

Reacting to General Irabor’s call,  the Northern Elders Forum reiterated its  long-standing demand for a state of emergency on insecurity in the northern part of the country.

The spokesperson for the forum, Prof. Abubakar Jiddere, in a recent interview said, “In one of our press releases, we called for this. For the second time, we called for it twice.  So, it is important for now that the government should declare a state of emergency on security.

A House of Representatives member representing Demsa, Numan and Lamurde federal constituency, Adamawa State, Kwamoti Laori, recently said that  only state policing can address insecurity in Nigeria.

The Peoples Democratic Party federal lawmaker  noted that state police stand out as the best solution to the country’s insecurity, pointing out that it was experimented with in the 1960s and proved effective.

The African Democratic Congress, ADC,  also flayed President Bola Tinubu’s approach to the fight against insecurity, describing his administration’s insensitivity to the worsening insecurity across the country.

In a statement issued two  Sundays ago via X by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC  pointed accusing fingers at the President  for  abandoning his constitutional responsibility as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces while insecurity continues to escalate nationwide.

The ADC noted that over 180 schools in northern Nigeria had been shut due to insecurity, adding that incidents of abductions, killings, and forced displacement were increasing in states such as Plateau, Zamfara, Benue, Niger, Kaduna, and Kwara.