Insecurity and poor economic records: Inter-State collaboration as panacea

Recent manifestations of the workings of socio-economic and political dysfunctional realities have begun to assume worsening dimension. Economic conditions in the Country have far worsened with reservations which are compounding to generate chains of troubles shaking the fabrics of the Country. Prevailing records of economic outcome continue to reflect deepening profile with alarming concerns. Figures released on Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Consumer Price Inflation report for January, reflected worsening rate of inflation in the Country. According to the report, the composite food index rose by 20.57 per cent in January 2021 from 19.56 per cent in December 2020. This accounted for the bulk of the Country’s inflation rate which rose from 15.75 per cent in December 2020 to 16.47 per cent in January 2021. This figure is the highest since April 2017. According to the NBS, increases were recorded in all the Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose divisions that yielded the headline index. The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the 12 months’ period ending January 2021 over the average of the CPI for the previous 12 months’ period was 13.62 per cent, representing a 0.37 percentage point increase over 13.25 per cent recorded in December 2020. On month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 1.49 per cent in January 2021. The urban inflation rate increased rose to 17.03 per cent (year-on-year) in January 2021 from 16.33 per cent recorded in December 2020, while the rural inflation rate rose to 15.92 per cent in January 2021 from 15.20 per cent in December 2020.

The worsening state of the economy has been linked to the worsening state of insecurity across the country. Banditry most recently has become a disturbing threat which has led to troubling chains of disorder in the Country. A most recent narrative on Wednesday is the abduction of no fewer than 42 people, including 27 students, who were kidnapped when bandits attacked Government Science Secondary School, Kagara in Niger State. The Niger Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Muhammad Idris, who confirmed the ugly development, also said the whereabouts of three teachers are unknown. According to him, 12 family members of the teachers were also abducted during the attack. It was disclosed the terrorist who whisked their victims away were dressed in military uniforms. It was also disclosed that one student, whose identity is yet to be given, was killed. The ugly development is coming barely two months after over 300 students were kidnapped in a nearby town to President Muhammadu Buhari’s home town in Katsina State.

The Senate had in reaction on Wednesday asked President Buhari to declare a state of emergency on security without further delay. The red chamber made the call following a point of order raised by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), in respect of the abduction of the students and staff of the Government Science Secondary School in Kagara, Niger State.  The Senate demanded the implementation of its ad hoc resolution on security and urged the combined team of military and police to set up an operation to destroy criminal camps across the Country. Senator Sabi Abdullahi, also from Niger State, in his comments, said the kidnappers and bandits were emboldened by the successes being recorded in the state in recent time as about 100 people had so far been kidnapped in the state. According to the lawmaker, the forest from the FCT which extends to Niger up to Zamfara State was being used by the criminals. He said the fact that the bandits have invaded Niger State was an indication that the safety of lives and properties of FCT residents is being threatened. Senator Bima Enagi, also from Niger State, who was critical in his reaction that the President Buhari’s administration was incompetent to handle security challenges in the country said, “We need to amend the constitution so that governors should be chief security officers of their states since the government at the centre had failed to protect the lives and properties of Nigerians. The Federal Government is busy giving palliative instead of creating employment, thus aggravating insecurity.”

The Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (retd.), in response mentioned that it is the responsibility of every citizen to be at alert amidst the insecurity in Nigeria. The Minister who said this while addressing journalists as captured in a video posted on Twitter by AIT, said: “It is the responsibility of everybody to keep alert and to find safety when necessary. But we shouldn’t be cowards. At times, the bandits will only come with about three rounds of ammunition, when they fire shots everybody runs. In our younger days, we stand to fight any aggression coming for us. I don’t know why people are running from minor things like that. They should stand and let these people know that even the villagers have the competency and capabilities to defend themselves. Our own duty is to ensure that no Nigerian is hurt, and we are capable of protecting the integrity of this nation and we’ll continue to do it even though we are so stretched. Even in the developed Countries, they are still debating on it, whether to continue or not. But I don’t advise Nigeria to start issuing firearms for personal use.”

The troubling state of security matters in the Country in most recent times has manifestly inflicted its blow on the working fabrics of the society. The profile of economic impacts amidst stiff socio-political disturbances the threat of insecurity is posing before the Country calls for stronger concern. It is paramount that the Federal Government which bears the preserve of security responsibility in the Federation according to constitutional provisions, rise to lead the course of redeeming the Country from intending collapse. The degenerating dimension of the wings of troubles offshooting from the heightening of security challenges in the Country, have continued to brew reservations and conflicting reactions which are capable of heating up the polity beyond controllable circumstances.

It is paramount for the Federal Government to work with the Federal units with utmost sensitivity and responsiveness to develop a system of specificity to forcefully address the prevailing situation across States in the Federation. Setting up operations that are peculiar to the situations of high troubled States of the Federation is key, while broadband system of response should be developed to proactively prevent those with minimal security threats. Since it is clear that every state has its own variant of security challenges which is more peculiar, it is essential for the Federal Government to address the security matters from the peculiar circumstances of each state up to the general security troubles bewildering the Country. Working in the light of a collaborative architecture is therefore imperative among the Federal Government and the component units to address the pressing security woes of the Country.