Afenifere Expresses Shock Over Latest Attack In Kwara, Kebbi School Girls Abduction

The pan-Yoruba socio-political organization, Afenifere, has expressed shock over the attack on Christ Apostolic Church during a special service on Tuesday as well as the killing and abduction of rice farmers in Bokungi in Edu local government area of the same Kwara State on Wednesday.

Afenifere’s position was contained in a Statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi.

Afenifere also decried the attack on Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, Kebbi State and and the killing of Brigadier General Musa Uba who was ambushed on Damboa-Biu by terrorists.

Reports have it that some bandits attacked the said church at about 6.30pm on November 18th, killed about three people, wounded many and abducted some people whose number is not yet known.Kwara Police spokesman, SP Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi confirmed the attack.

Report also has it that the bandits launched another attack on Ilorin-Kabba Road, forcing travellers to abandon their vehicles and flee. Latest report has it that bandits attacked rice farmers in Bokungi, Edu local government area of Kwara state the very following day after Eruku incident.

A spokesman for Eruku Community, Mr. Olasunkanmi Ayeni, besides confirming the attack went further to say that the bandits have been making desperate attempts to penetrate the community for about four weeks.

The pan-Yoruba organization asserted that the incidents further brought the level of insecurity to the fore.

“The level of insecurity is calling for a thorough overhauling of the country’s security architecture as high level complicity, sabotage and attempts to turn the people against the government cannot be ruled out in the upsurge of terrorists’ attacks presently”.

It further contended that the dimension which the attacks were taking, the sophistication and derring-do character of the attacks clearly shown that the attacks were carefully planned and were being carried out by elements who are versed in military and intelligence operations.

This supposition was lent credence to by no less a person than Kebbi State Governor, Mohammed Nasir Idris, who disclosed that there was an intelligence report that the school was going to be attacked and he acted on the information with a view to preventing the attack from being carried out.

The governor who disclosed this when he visited the school in Maga declared pointedly that the attack was “a clear sabotage”.

Giving reason for this conclusion, Governor Idris said:

“We got credible intelligence from the Department of State Security (DSS) that this school was likely to be attacked. DSS further advised that we convene an emergency Security Council meeting, which we did.

”A teacher in the school who escaped stated that there was a heavy military presence in the school. The soldiers even provided training protocols to students and teachers the day before the attack. In his words, “the heavily-armed security men spent the entire night guarding the school. Sadly, for yet-to-be-determined reasons, they reportedly left the school before dawn. About 30 minutes after they withdrew, the kidnappers struck…”

This narration, along with the report of how intelligence about General Ubah’s movement was leaked and failure to provide him with necessary cover and the disclosure that calls made to the authorities before the Eruku attack were ignored, “were clear indications that the efforts of the military to defeat terrorists are being sabotaged most likely from within”.

Report has it that the circumstance of Ubah’s ambush was similar to how another Brigadier General, Dzarma Zirkusu, was killed in 2021 around the same place.

It would be recalled that in some of the attacks in Benue and Plateau States, allegations of bandits striking immediately after security men unceremoniously left a place were also rife.

Ajayi recalled that the federal government allotted humongous N6.576.5 trillion to security and defence in the 2025 budget. But the budgetary allocation debunked this impression. Questions can however be on how the allocation is being expended.

“Going by what is happening, impression was being created that the situation was getting out of hand because the government failed to provide needed fund.

In view of the foregoing, Afenifere suggested the following steps to be taken without further delay:

• The immediate implementation of the National Counter-Terrorism Strategy (NACTEST) and prompt enforcement of Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011 as amended in 2013 and 2022. The Act is “for the prevention, prohibition and combating of acts of terrorism, financing of terrorism in Nigeria …” etc.

• The DSS and Military Intelligence to beam more searchlight within.

• DSS to beam searchlights on illegal mining sites.

• Serving military officers be made to concentrate more on military duties.

• Veterans on retirement be engaged to supplement the serving officers.

• Community leaders be integrated into security apparatus of their respective places and be warned that they would face the music where and when complicity or sabotage is proven against any of them.

• State police be set up immediately while machinery for the necessary constitutional framework is set in motion.

• Genuine capacity-building be done regularly for officers.

• Anti-graft agencies can beam searchlight on defence spending.

• As is known, politicians, the world over, often vilify their opponents. Nigeria politicians are no exceptions. Those who are overtly or covertly encouraging banditry for (present or expected) political gains should remember that they can successfully operate as politicians only in a safe environment.

• Governments should be more forthcoming on enhancing socio-economic condition of the people. This can be done through short-term, mid-term and long-term measures.

• Peace building efforts involving meetings of stakeholders in various communities with a view to reminding them that banditry has no intrinsic benefits whatsoever be instituted. Perceived collaborators should be reined-in with both carrots and sticks.