Even though President Muhammadu Buhari and his aides have stuck to their guns that Boko Haram and other agents of darkness destroying the country have been technically degraded, Nigerians are not in any doubt crime is not abating at all. If anything, the situation is getting worse. As at mid-2020 such extremely violent activities as are happening now in the country were more restricted to the North-
East geo-political zone. Now, it is all over the country in different shape and mode.
Inspite of assurances that government is on top of the situation, Nigerians do not believe there is any headway in tackling the menace. When security agencies report that several terrorists have been killed, the ordinary Nigerian dismiss such as not reflecting reality on ground. The Nigerian public know that dead men do not mutate or are capable of waking up from dead or capable of wedging war on security agencies and the military.
Common sense dictates that if indeed Boko Haram, bandits, kidnappers or armed Fulani herdsmen had been decimated as they were made to believe, those criminals would not garner the effrontery to take their battle to the base of the military and the police, including elite Military institutions as the Nigerian Defence Academy, Command and Staff College, Military Super Camps and police stations.
Criminals added another dimension to their game on October 29, 2021, when they invaded the residence of the number two judicial officer in the country, Justice Mary Odili. Hoodlums masquerading as agents of the Office Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (OAGF), obtained a search warrant and attempted to possibly whisk Odili away. The rest is history, but that is a serious issue.
Since October 29, up until the Police high command published their investigation, which was akin to the tales by the moonlight, nothing tangible has been done regarding the matter. This has increased pessimism against the ability or rather, willingness of the present President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to fight insecurity in the country.
For instance, Boko Haram elements have on several occasions attacked arms supply of the nation’s Armed Forces. They not only succeeded in dispossessing our forces of several tons and caliber of arms and ammunition and hardware but had killed several officers and men in the process. They did these successfully not once, twice, trice, or even four times, but severally, adopting almost same modus operandi and they succeeded.
It is the same way these bandits attack communities, rape people and abduct men, women and children, waylay travelers on the highway, attack market places and even worship places. These criminals have repeatedly done these, suggesting that criminals have a higher motivation than deterrent against criminality.
The AUTHORITY blames all these squarely on a serious missing point between actionable intelligence and operations carried out against the criminals. In almost all the successful operation of bandits, boko haram, kidnappers, armed herdsmen and terrorists, Nigerians always get to know that the intelligence community had raised necessary red flags, only for the political and operational will to take necessary action to disappear.
That is why we urge the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Chief of Defence Staff, to reorder their modus operandi. Adopting same crime fighting methodology since 2015 is clearly not working. They need to rejig and firm up the criminal justice system to ensure that criminal charged to court do not in getting such litigation dragged unnecessarily as being witnessed.
What for instance have we gained by criminal trials lingering for upward of 10 to 15 years? How would witnesses still remember accurately what they observed or the information at their disposal over such a long period? How would a judge successfully coordinate his mental acuity, lucidly dissecting evidence, fact and law on a matter that had dragged for 15 years? It can only be so if Nigerian judges possess extraordinary ability akin to the almighty. As they say, justice delayed is justice denied, so administration of criminal justice system need to be reviewed to fast track all encumbrances.
From benefit of hindsight, most criminal litigation fail because such matters linger far too long in court and witnesses either develop cold feet, intimidated into accepting to testify over the matter.
It must be pointed out that victims of crime and their families naturally feel that the Nigerian law protects the felon, rather than dispense justice and so, they relapse to the almighty God to take vengeance, thus increasing extra-judicial act of victims who prefer jungle justice. Question is, what would be the gain if a suspected kidnapper or terrorist gets convicted 15 years after committing a crime?
How would victims of kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, terrorism feel when their attackers get pardoned, released or rehabilitated, yet, without any form of compensation for the victim? This government attitude defies logic and common sense and it is definitely not helping matters. it is exacerbating criminality unfortunately.
The handling of Justice Odili’s matter should not follow same pattern like reported infractions against the Chairman of the Code of Justice Tribunal, Justice Danladi Umar, who had attacked certain security guards at the Banex Plaza, Abuja. Allowing such matter to linger erodes the confidence of the ordinary people on the nation’s judiciary and criminal justice system.
There are several lingering issues such as those around the former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), CP Ibrahim Magu, issues around the alleged illegal and criminal sale of seized public property by certain persons in linked to the AGF’s office, lingering litigation of so many top politicians accused of embezzlement of public fund, fraudulent activities around the Police Pension Fund, the Presidential Task Force on Pension, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) fraud, the disappearance of fund for constituency projects and several high profile criminal cases. Allowing these to linger erodes the credibility of the government and when juxtaposed against spiraling inflation and rising unemployment in the country, remain most unfortunate.
President Buhari should do the needful. He knows what to do. Not taking the necessary action and getting results that will accord with the knowledge of ordinary Nigerians is a serious problem for the country. At the moment, the ordinary Nigerians repose little or no confidence in the Nigerian system and this is the home truth, no matter what the Information Minister or any public officer might choose to say.
It must be pointed out that public perception matters in whatever one is doing. If a government is generally seen to be performing woefully so badly, no matter the propaganda by government, it doesn’t change the situation. We must do what we should be done, aware that you cannot hide 9-months pregnancy from people. The time for shadow chasing is over. Let government face reality and do the needful. If the political leaders do so, Nigeria will bounce back again.
