In a single weekend marked by savagery, terrorists killed 38 persons who had been kidnapped months earlier in Zamfara and brutally murdered a promising entrepreneur in Anambra.
These atrocities underscore the brazen audacity of non-state actors and highlight the growing sense of helplessness among citizens. The government must not lose sight of its primary responsibility—securing the people. It must act decisively to rein in the terrorists.
The 38 victims, mostly women and children, were abducted a few months ago with a ransom demand of N50 million. After the ransom was paid, the terrorists callously killed them on July 27, shooting some and slaughtering others with machetes—a truly unconscionable act.
Less than 24 hours earlier, in Anambra, armed men broke into the home of Ifesinachi Chikere, a fish farmer. They shot him in the leg before abducting him in his car.
Like the Zamfara case, a ransom was demanded and paid, but the kidnappers killed Chikere and dumped his body by the roadside the next day.
These horrific attacks have sparked widespread outrage. Acting British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Gill Levers, described the Zamfara massacre as an “unspeakable crime that damages people’s mental and physical well-being and retards economic progress.”
The British government is reportedly involved in initiatives to curb the rising trend of kidnapping in Nigeria.
However, the responses from the police and the state governments have been predictable, offering the same tired rhetoric that follows every act of violence. “These criminals must choose surrender or face total elimination. Their time is up,” declared Zamfara Governor Dauda Lawal. But no one is convinced.
In Anambra, the police promised to deploy tactical security teams to apprehend those who killed Chikere. A week after the incident, the state government issued a press statement calling the attack “dastardly and heart-wrenching”.
Yet these official reactions fail to inspire confidence. Instead, they reveal the political class’s inability to confront this grave threat, which endangers Nigeria’s very existence.
A resident of a Zamfara community expressed this despair to Amnesty International: “The government issues media statements after we are attacked and killed. That is all they do. When the next attack comes, they will issue another empty statement while bandits escalate their atrocities. We are helpless.”
Fifteen years of insecurity have displaced and traumatised over 3 million people, mostly women and children, in IDP camps, desperately in need of assistance, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
With Boko Haram gaining allies like Ansaru, ISWAP, Lakurawa, Mahmuda, Fulani herdsmen, and bandit leaders such as Bello Turji operating freely across state borders, insecurity has worsened despite the official narrative.
Since the start of the year, Boko Haram and ISWAP have targeted security personnel, killing many, destroying facilities, and looting armouries. Reports also indicate territory has been seized, although the military denies this.
In the last two years, over 10,217 people have been killed nationwide, according to AI.
Benue accounts for the highest death toll with 6,896 deaths, followed by Plateau with 2,630.
Bandits have reportedly sacked about 638 villages in Zamfara alone. Across much of the North, farmers cannot safely tend their fields for fear of kidnapping or murder, leading to worsening food insecurity. Some are forced to pay heavy levies to access their farms. This represents a clear failure of the state.
Like cancer, insecurity has metastasised, threatening every aspect of Nigerian life. Numerous schools have shut down; medical workers have been kidnapped. This must end.
Terrorists are gaining ground. They, along with collaborators such as gunrunners and informants, must be crushed.
Recently, the Katsina State Government blamed many bandit attacks on ordinary civilians who provide crucial intelligence about troop and aircraft movements, profiting immensely by supplying bandits. Such actions should be treated as treason.
The military must intensify its fight against these insurgents. The Federal Government should deepen collaboration with Nigeria’s neighbours and seek assistance from willing global powers to contain and defeat the rampaging terrorists.
