As the 2023 general elections are fast approaching, so also is the worsening insecurity in the country. Aspirants of various political parties are emerging in their numbers in preparation for next year’s polls. This is what we call democracy in action.
However, the incessant killings in the country has raised serious question as to whether our desperate politicians have ever stopped, pondered and assessed the threat posed by the lingering insecurity for their 2023 ambitions.
It seems Nigeria has been divided into two. One section is being controlled by terrorists and bandits while the other is controlled by Nigerian government. The Sultan of Sokoto Sa’ad Abubakar and other religious leaders have expressed fears on the likely conduct of 2023 general elections. They based they arguments on the deteriorating insecurity in the country with government looking helpless.
The recent attack on Abuja-Kaduna train by suspected members of Ansa-ruddeen terror group has further indicated Boko Haram expansionism. The terror group which suffered massive onslaught by our gallant soldiers and presently in disarray must have moved to the North-west states.
The drifting of Boko Haram to some North-west states and parts of Niger state did not come to many Nigerians as a surprise. Sometime last year, the Governor of Niger state, Abubakar Sani Bello, raised the alarm over the presence of Boko Haram in his state. The governor warned that the deadly terror group was few kilometers away from Abuja.
The shocking statement from the governor who is the chief security officer of the state must have forced the federal government to deploy security forces to scoop necessary intelligence gathering. But I don’t think the government has acted on the governor’s claims or, at least, taken urgent necessary actions to arrest the situation. Now, Niger state is at the mercy of rapacious bandits cum Boko Haram elements who have continued to sack communities.
In the South-east, the security situation is no different from the North. The region has been battling with the proscribed Independent People of the Republic of Biafra (IPOB). The secessionist group, through its armed wing, Eastern Security Network (ESN), are holding some states in the zone to ransom.
The group which assumed state role has since declared Monday work-free day and directed law abiding citizens to remain indoors. Public places, banks and markets have to obey the draconic order for their own safety. Besides free day declaration, the arsonists have been attacking security formations and innocent people on daily basis.
Without a doubt, the country is facing survival wars from violent activities of non-state actors. While the country is gradually tilting towards a failed state with corpses littered across its length and breadth, our politicians are busy scheming how to get to or remain in power.
They don’t give a damn about the escalation of tension or how Innocent lives are being soaked into the ocean of blood. This reminds one of the recent sermon by Sheik Khalil, former imam of Apo Legislative Quarters, Abuja. In a Friday sermon recently, the Islamic cleric advised Nigerians not to come out and vote in the 2023 elections unless government agrees to protect them.
There is nothing wrong in his sermon. He merely called the attention of government to live up to its basic responsibility. The primary function of government is to protect lives and properties of its citizens. However, government has failed in the discharge of this constitutional responsibility. It has become imperative to say that nowhere is safe in the country.
Our roads, airports and rail stations have been targeted and attacked by terrorists. Our rural communities which served as the food basket of the country have become ghosts of their former selves. Elections can only be conducted in a peaceful and secure environment. Evidence abound that unless the security situation improves, the country will go to the polls with more corpses. There is no gainsaying the fact that dead people don’t vote. Elections are meant for the living.
It is quite disturbing that most of the aspirants do not have any blueprint on how to tackle the insecurity bedeviling the country. When the President Muhammadu Buhari administration came on board in 2015, it promised to secure the country. One year for the administration to go, it seems security has worsened under its watch.
For the 2023 elections to hold and the living to vote, the government should quickly stem the tide of growing insecurity in the country. This can be achieved through: intelligence gathering, negotiation, massive bombardement and above all unraveling the sponsors of the terrorists.
Ibrahim Mustapha,Pambegua, Kaduna state08169056963.
