Peter Obi Decries Worsening Security Situation in Nigeria, Criticizes Government Approach

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, in Nigeria’s last general election, Peter Obi, has voiced his concerns over the rising spate of kidnappings in the country, despite significant increase in defense spending.

In a social media post on Monday, the former Anambra State governor said the situation, which has given birth to crowdfunding on social media, is not being given adequate attention by the government.

“How much politicians in Nigeria care about national insecurity has long been correlated with how close it gets to their mansions in Abuja, the capital,” he said.

Obi, responding to those criticizing his issue-based constructive criticism of Nigeria’s governance, called on detractors to read The Economist’s report on the country’s escalating kidnapping crisis. The report, published on January 18, 2024, sheds light on the worrisome surge in kidnappings, especially under President Tinubu’s administration.

In 2023 alone, the report noted, more than 3,600 people were abducted, marking the highest number on record. Despite a notable increase in defense spending, the security situation has deteriorated, with almost 9,000 Nigerians losing their lives in conflicts during the same year.

“A crowdfunding effort to pay the ransom was even backed by a former minister. But the kidnappers instead killed one of the girls and demanded more cash. The wife of President Bola Tinubu publicly lamented a “devastating loss”. Yet such horrors are still appallingly frequent—and largely ignored by politicians,” Obi stated.

“In one incident last week in southeast, 45 people were kidnapped and are still missing, yet few leaders spoke out. The deadliest zone is the northeast, where jihadists linked to Islamic State attack the army and villages,” he added.

The Economist noted a lack of an effective response from politicians, linking it to their apparent detachment from the insecurity affecting ordinary citizens. It added that President Tinubu’s security plan mirrors the strategies of his predecessor, focusing on military solutions and investing heavily in high-tech weaponry.

However, the report criticizes the neglect of underlying issues such as poverty and poor education. The widespread deployment of the military across all 36 states is also questioned, with a call for the police to assume a more prominent role in domestic security.

Graft in security spending emerges as a significant issue, with allegations that funds are diverted to reward political allies. The report highlights the problematic practice of “security votes,” amounting to approximately $700 million annually, which lacks public oversight and contributes to corruption.

Despite a nearly threefold increase in the defense budget since 2019, wasteful purchases and corruption persist, hindering effective security measures, it said.

The report noted that General Christopher Musa, Chief of Defense Staff, acknowledges the limitations of relying solely on military efforts for lasting peace. It said he emphasizes the importance of addressing root causes, including poverty and poor education.

Furthermore, the report notes a prevailing trend among politicians who prioritize personal expenditures over creating conditions for peace. Examples include the approval of expensive SUVs for lawmakers and substantial funds allocated for improving presidential accommodations.

In stark contrast, these expenditures come amid a backdrop where over 80 million Nigerians live on less than $2.15 a day.

“In November the national assembly approved SUVs for all 460 lawmakers, at a reported cost of $150,000-plus per car,” Obi said.

“In two months the government has budgeted $31m to improve accommodation for the president and vice-president—in a country of around 220m people where more than 80m are reckoned to live on less than $2.15 a day and many fear being kidnapped.”

The escalating security crisis, as highlighted in the report, raises serious concerns about the allocation of resources and the government’s ability to address the pressing issues facing the nation.

Read Obi’s full statement below:

For those who have continued to see my issue-based constructive criticism of a bad system as bad and are maligning my person and the Obidients for seeking good governance and a better future for all Nigerians, let them now read this report from the respected international newsmagazine, The Economist of London and do the same.

The Economist’s piece of 18th January 2024: Kidnappers are wreaking havoc in Nigeria – Yet President Tinubu’s security plan is worryingly like his predecessor’s.

How much politicians in Nigeria care about national insecurity has long been correlated with how close it gets to their mansions in Abuja, the capital. On its outskirts on January 2nd a father and his six daughters were kidnapped, prompting a rare outcry on high.

A crowdfunding effort to pay the ransom was even backed by a former minister. But the kidnappers instead killed one of the girls and demanded more cash. The wife of President Bola Tinubu publicly lamented a “devastating loss”. Yet such horrors are still appallingly frequent—and largely ignored by politicians.

In one incident last week in the southeast, 45 people were kidnapped and are still missing, yet few leaders spoke out. The deadliest zone is the northeast, where jihadists linked to Islamic State attack the army and villages.

The north-west, too, is riddled with gangs that routinely kidnap for ransom. A decades-long conflict between mostly Muslim herders and largely Christian farmers rumbles on in the country, where on Christmas Eve gunmen mowed down at least 160 people.

Separatist violence still smolders in Southeast Nigeria. At his inauguration last May Mr. Tinubu declared security his “top priority”. Yet more than 3,600 people were kidnapped in 2023, the most ever, according to ACLED, a global monitor of conflict.

The snatching rose sharply after Mr Tinubu took office. And almost 9,000 Nigerians were killed in conflict last year (see chart). The government stresses that, in its most recent budget, spending on defense and the police took the biggest share, about 12% in all.

Defense got a fifth more than it did last year. Yet inflation is running at 29%, so in real terms the defense budget has fallen. The government tends to splurge on fancy weapons systems that fail to tackle the roots of the problem, which are poverty, poor education, and anger at army atrocities.

The latest budget includes funds for six t-129 Turkish attack helicopters on top of the 12 costly Bell choppers bought last year from America for $1bn, not to mention 12 Super Tucano attack aircraft. Buying strike drones has become so popular that the army runs in a fleet alongside that of [other] Forces. But drones are very good at guarding schools from kidnappings, and heavy weaponry risks disaster. A drone recently killed at least 85 civilians at a festival in Kaduna state—not the first such cock-up.

The army promised to “fine-tune” its operations, but more radical change is needed. The police, well equipped but able to use better human intelligence, should lead on domestic security, not the army, which has been deployed in all 36 of Nigeria’s states.

Another huge problem is graft in security spending. “Defence is a prime part of the budget where you can take large quantities of money out without people being any the wiser,” says Matthew Page of Chatham House, a think-tank in London.

Much of the budget, he says, is still about rewarding those who paid to get Mr Tinubu elected. Sometimes the army fails to receive its budget allocation. This is worsened by a system known as “security votes”, whereby parts of defense spending are deemed too sensitive to require public oversight. The practice, which accounts for perhaps $700m a year, increased sharply under the last president and may well jump more under Mr Tinubu.

The defense budget has nearly tripled since 2019. But thanks to inflation, wasteful purchases, sales, and corruption, Nigerians do not suffer. General Christopher Musa, the chief of defence staff, appears to understand the roots of the insecurity. “Military effort alone is incapable of restoring enduring peace,” he says, adding that the army helped build hundreds of schools under his command in the north-east.

Yet many politicians seem keener to spend on themselves, rather than create the conditions for peace or fill the country’s fiscal hole. Even if Mr Tinubu resists the temptation to reinstate the petrol subsidy that he largely removed last year, debt servicing alone in 2024 may gobble up 61% of revenue.

In November the national assembly approved SUVs for all 460 lawmakers, at a reported cost of $150,000-plus per car. In two months the government has budgeted $31m to improve accommodation for the president and vice-president—in a country of around 220m people where more than 80m are reckoned to live on less than $2.15 a day and many fear being kidnapped.