The spate of killings across Africa’s most populous nation with 201 million people according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA), has given the country an unpalatable reputation as a country where regard for human lives is diminishing on a daily basis.
Worse still, everywhere in the country has been turned into killing fields by terrorists, armed bandits, kidnappers and other lethal criminal gangs who are becoming more brazen in their bid to kill for financial or bizarre political gains. The prevailing state of insecurity especially in the northern part of Nigeria, where the group, Boko Haram, which later metamorphosed into the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), has been terrorizing the North-East and the rising wave of killings nationwide in no small way underscore the huge deficit in Nigeria’s security architecture.
The despicable killing of defenceless citizens in the country puts the onus on President Muhammadu Buhari to listen to voices of reason as to the unbearable scale of insecurity in the country and the need to carefully and quickly look for possible ways out of the situation. In this vein, we totally join the rising calls for the removal of security chiefs as they have continuously demonstrated a lack of ability to ensure the security of lives and property in the country. Our stand is even more strengthened by the fact that the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) in Section 33 (1) clearly states that every person has a right to life and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria. Interestingly, Section 14 (2b) clearly states that the welfare and security of the citizens shall be the primary purpose of the government.
Sadly, the spiralling level of insecurity in Nigeria paints a picture that leaves many with the impression that the federal government has abdicated its aforementioned responsibility. In any case, all hope is not lost if only the government can do the needful by replacing the current service chiefs with a view to moving the nation out of the current security quagmire. We mourn the country’s security operatives who have lost their lives in the defence of Nigeria, and commend those still offering their service to protect fellow citizens in the face of threats to our well- being.
Above all, the federal government must make adequate funding available to Nigeria’s security agencies to enable them overcome any encumbrances that may be hindering their operations to secure the country effectively.
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