Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, has connected the recent spike in murders nationwide to the run-up to the general election in 2027.
The nation has recently seen a resurgence of bandit attacks in the North-West and terror acts in the Northeast.
Killing hotspots remain in Plateau and Benue states.
At least 34 worshippers were killed Monday at a mosque in Katsina State’s Unguwar Mantau village, which is part of the Malumfashi Local Government Area.
Speaking Thursday night on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Musa stated that political activities leading up to the polls could not be separated from the increasing wave of insecurity in comparison to the previous year.
He claims that certain politicians intentionally incite violence in order to undermine the government’s security record and run on a platform of chaos.
“Terrorists and bandits alike collaborate with one another. Their shared objective is to disrupt communities and gain money. However, there is a political component as well. Some people oppose peace because they believe that the government is performing well when there is peace. The administration is perceived as failing when there is no peace.
“The fewest deaths were reported last year. Why has everything suddenly increased this year? The election and politics are on the horizon. It is impossible to rule out the possibility that certain individuals are manipulating these criminals in order to maintain peace and undermine the credibility of the government. However, the amusing question is: how can you murder the people you wish to rule? What benefits do you receive from it? Musa enquired.
The defence chief also revealed that both domestic and international funding are responsible for the continued growth of terrorism in Nigeria.
He noted that although the process of identifying terror financiers has been slowed down by legal obstacles, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, the Department of State Services, and the National Intelligence Agency are all tracking them.
He assured that these connections are being monitored and mentioned the discovery of international cooperation and foreign financing of terrorists.
“The task of identifying those who finance terrorism is underway. The AGF and others went to check only last week. It has to deal with international relations and legal matters. Some of them receive outside funding. Arrests have been made, and prosecutions have begun, thanks to the NFIU’s tremendous efforts. “The Owo bombing perpetrators are already on trial,” he stated.
Musa noted that the country’s judicial system inhibits terrorism prosecution, urging for faster trials, stronger legislation and the introduction of special courts for terrorism cases.
“It also has to do with the legal system,” Musa continued. Legal intercepts can occasionally be taken to court and, for various reasons, be knocked out. Once more, our legal system has to be reviewed because some of the penalties and prosecutions are insufficient and take too long.
“We will handle matters as soon as they should be if we had special courts. We must also reevaluate the penalties for offences. But even when it comes to terrorism, our rules must be strict. Our judicial system is annoying. It must be unbundled, accelerated, and strengthened. We are unable to prosecute once people realise they can get away with anything.
Evidence is occasionally excluded from court proceedings for a variety of reasons. The penalties are insufficient and slow. Our legal system needs to be unbundled, streamlined, and strengthened. Innocence takes hold once people realise they can get away with anything. In the South-South, for instance, we seize vessels, they give us peanuts, and the vessels come back. Despite environmental concerns, that is why we had to bomb them. However, that has brought about more peace than letting the legal impediments persist,” he continued.
The CDS also recognised the security threats associated with instability in the Sahel, citing Nigeria’s porous 4,000-kilometer border and free markets for weapons and ammunition in surrounding nations.
He emphasised that many infiltrators appear as brothers and sisters but ultimately become threats, and warned Nigerians against showing indiscriminate hospitality to foreigners.
The Sahel has been open since the fall of Libya. In those markets, you can purchase any kind of weapon. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are also unstable. Nigeria is of interest to everyone due to its wealth and size. Nigerians open their doors too readily, which is our problem. That was the beginning of Boko Haram—welcoming strangers who turned into monsters. He cautioned, “We must never permit foreigners to occupy even a small portion of our territory.”
Musa asked Nigerians to help the Armed Forces by refusing to hide criminals, but he also stated that the military was collaborating with Sahelian counterparts under the Alliance of Sahel States to combat cross-border terrorism.
Because some individuals continue to provide them with money, fuel, supplies, or housing, these terrorists are able to flourish. Every day, residents even transfer funds into their accounts. They won’t flourish if we don’t allow them room. Everyone has to be on board to beat them.
The fall of Libya sparked the issue. The Sahel is now accessible while Sudan is in chaos. You can purchase any type of weapon or ammo in their markets. The borders are merely there, and everyone sails across. In the Sahel, this problem is also present in Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso.
Because people believe Nigeria is vast and wealthy, everyone is interested in it. In Nigeria, they can enter and engage in a variety of activities. We also have the problem of Nigerians opening their doors. Our hearts are big. However, we must consider security. We may say, “These are our brothers and sisters coming in,” yet they don’t mean well for us. We let things fester until they turn into monsters and begin to devour us, at which point we begin to gripe.
We continue to collaborate with the nations of the Alliance of Sahel States because we recognise their importance. They must be stable for us. Given the current situation, you must remain firm if your neighbour is in difficulties. There, we are collaborating with the military. We are aware of how critical it is that we protect ourselves,” the CDS stated.
The CDS also bemoaned the fact that terrorists in the nation were continuing to carry out their horrible crimes by exploiting the lack of proper technology.
He revealed that the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine had contributed to the rising cost of security, but that the Nigerian Army was making every effort to defend its population using the resources at its disposal.
“I give an example,” he added, “because each medium range precision weapon costs $100,000. How much is $100,000 worth in Naira? How many can you purchase? Therefore, you must use it with extreme caution to ensure that it has a beneficial effect. We had a successful strike just two weeks ago in which we murdered more than 100 of them on 50 motorcycles. We took them out because the timing was right, we were prepared, and the drone was present,” he said.
In addition, Musa noted that the military need real-time satellites for precision strikes, but he pointed out that the equipment was highly costly, which he claimed was abused by terrorists and outlaws.
“You see, we need real-time satellites in terms of what we need,” he continued. I’ll give you an example so you can see how your commanders can guide you throughout an operation: “This man is moving here, these ones are deployed here, good.” However, we lack that, and since we lack it, these items are costly to purchase. Additionally, they profit from these limitations.
The Defence Industrial Bill, which would permit production in Nigeria, was adopted by the Bola Tinubu administration, he continued, adding that certain other nations were allowed to employ the technologically advanced equipment because they created it themselves.
Sometimes you can’t get the equipment even with your money. Many pieces of equipment are now hard to get due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Therefore, I’m pleased that Mr. President signed the Defence Industrial Bill and DICON last year, allowing us to invite original equipment manufacturers and start production. Because when we produce, we can obtain a lot of value for our money. It will be quite challenging if you don’t, so we’re working on that,” the defence chief stated.
