The authorities must do more to protect lives and property of Nigerians
The brutal murder of a pregnant Mrs Harira Jubril along with her four children has put in bold relief the grand mayhem and unmitigated daredevilry ravaging Anambra State today. In the last 10 days alone, the state has witnessed such blood curdling atrocities that no one would ever have imagined. Describing the killing of the Jubrils as callous, brutal, and demeaning, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said it is “capable of creating ethnic conflict across the country hence it must be condemned by all.” When you add that tragedy to the beheading of a serving member of the house of assembly, you get the picture of a state besieged.
The security situation in the Southeast confirms earlier prognosis about the likely long-term results of a self-help approach to resolving political grievances. The repeatedly expressed fear at the time was that purposeless escalation of social tension and the triumph of never-do-wells may ultimately be out of control if the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its modus operandi were not brought under some form of containment. What we are witnessing now is partly the outcome of three years of ill-advised indifference by state governors and other stakeholders in the zone.
Notwithstanding the counsel by concerned elders, the IPOB movement held unto its sit-at-home order in the entire Southeast. Several innocent lives have been lost just as enforcers of the order have razed houses, vehicles and destroyed the means of livelihood of people. The illusion of dominance by armed young men who terrorized vulnerable neighbourhoods was mistaken for the reality of territorial control, which it was not. Progressively, small bands of the formerly semi-homogenous group began to function with increasing autonomy. Then, individuals and small groups with criminal motives began to cash in on the apparent air of lawlessness. Today in the Southeast, and particularly Anambra State, nearly every one of the many groups terrorizing people is autonomous. And it is getting worse by the hour.
It is obvious that IPOB and its affiliates no longer have the capacity to rein in the demonic forces ravaging a territory over which they claim both ownership and dominance. It is now also almost impossible for anyone, including the detained Nnamdi Kanu, to either successfully call off the pointless sit-at-home order, or end the senseless killings. The challenge at hand is how to make the criminality that came on the heels of the triumphalism of a not-well-organised IPOB to go away.
The Nigerian State is under siege on all fronts, with more frontiers opening at every turn. But the state of lawlessness that pervades the Southeast cannot be allowed to continue. It is incumbent on the authorities to demonstrate the capacity to secure the lives and property of Nigerians. To do that, the federal government must assume a larger premise of its sovereign responsibility. It should protect the people from each other and from bad people. The IPOB phenomenon has been allowed to metastasize into a self-destructive virus. The overriding doctrine ought to be that the nation is unsafe for as long any inch of the nation space is unsafe or any one citizen is unsafe.
The police in Anambra must address the ‘mafia’ business culture of organised crime and syndicated killings which has infiltrated the state. This nascent culture has become even more frightening as bad businessmen have begun to enter the political field. The use of targeted assassinations to eliminate opponents or to settle political scores before, during or after elections has added a dangerous dimension to the problem. Bringing lasting security and peace to Anambra State would require the combined efforts of the federal and state governments in addition to market associations and community leaders. GeneralSmart ListReviews Post template: ?
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The authorities must do more to protect lives and property of Nigerians
The brutal murder of a pregnant Mrs Harira Jubril along with her four children has put in bold relief the grand mayhem and unmitigated daredevilry ravaging Anambra State today. In the last 10 days alone, the state has witnessed such blood curdling atrocities that no one would ever have imagined. Describing the killing of the Jubrils as callous, brutal, and demeaning, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said it is “capable of creating ethnic conflict across the country hence it must be condemned by all.” When you add that tragedy to the beheading of a serving member of the house of assembly, you get the picture of a state besieged.
The security situation in the Southeast confirms earlier prognosis about the likely long-term results of a self-help approach to resolving political grievances. The repeatedly expressed fear at the time was that purposeless escalation of social tension and the triumph of never-do-wells may ultimately be out of control if the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its modus operandi were not brought under some form of containment. What we are witnessing now is partly the outcome of three years of ill-advised indifference by state governors and other stakeholders in the zone.
Notwithstanding the counsel by concerned elders, the IPOB movement held unto its sit-at-home order in the entire Southeast. Several innocent lives have been lost just as enforcers of the order have razed houses, vehicles and destroyed the means of livelihood of people. The illusion of dominance by armed young men who terrorized vulnerable neighbourhoods was mistaken for the reality of territorial control, which it was not. Progressively, small bands of the formerly semi-homogenous group began to function with increasing autonomy. Then, individuals and small groups with criminal motives began to cash in on the apparent air of lawlessness. Today in the Southeast, and particularly Anambra State, nearly every one of the many groups terrorizing people is autonomous. And it is getting worse by the hour.
It is obvious that IPOB and its affiliates no longer have the capacity to rein in the demonic forces ravaging a territory over which they claim both ownership and dominance. It is now also almost impossible for anyone, including the detained Nnamdi Kanu, to either successfully call off the pointless sit-at-home order, or end the senseless killings. The challenge at hand is how to make the criminality that came on the heels of the triumphalism of a not-well-organised IPOB to go away.
The Nigerian State is under siege on all fronts, with more frontiers opening at every turn. But the state of lawlessness that pervades the Southeast cannot be allowed to continue. It is incumbent on the authorities to demonstrate the capacity to secure the lives and property of Nigerians. To do that, the federal government must assume a larger premise of its sovereign responsibility. It should protect the people from each other and from bad people. The IPOB phenomenon has been allowed to metastasize into a self-destructive virus. The overriding doctrine ought to be that the nation is unsafe for as long any inch of the nation space is unsafe or any one citizen is unsafe.
The police in Anambra must address the ‘mafia’ business culture of organised crime and syndicated killings which has infiltrated the state. This nascent culture has become even more frightening as bad businessmen have begun to enter the political field. The use of targeted assassinations to eliminate opponents or to settle political scores before, during or after elections has added a dangerous dimension to the problem. Bringing lasting security and peace to Anambra State would require the combined efforts of the federal and state governments in addition to market associations and community leaders.
