Former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, has said that the nation’s security situation has deteriorated compared to his administration between 1999 and 2007.
Obasanjo said this while on a working visit to Bauchi State, where he was scheduled to commission road projects constructed by Governor Bala Mohammed on Sunday.
He noted that during his administration, the safety of lives and properties was a top priority as opposed to the present situation.
Data by SBM Intelligence, analysed by THE WHISTLER revealed that no fewer than 12,256 people have been reportedly killed in 15 months of the Bola Tinubu administration.
A breakdown of the figure of those killed showed that 781 died as a result of insecurity in the momth of June 2023; July 2023- 709; August 2023- 813; September 2023- 518; October 2023- 776; November 2023- 885 and December 2023- 1013.
Also, in the month of January 2024, about 757 were killed; while February had 773; March 907; April 1,128; May 924; June 932; July 596 and August 744.
Speaking on tbe insecurity , Obasanjo said the situation has become so bad to the extent urgent steps must be taken by the government to address the issue
He said, “The situation of insecurity in Nigeria today is so bad, unlike during our terms in office when we prioritize the security of lives and properties across the country. We need to do something urgently about this.
“During our service to the nation, we did everything collectively; our decisions were taken together to have a uniform focus. My brother, Ahmed Adamu Mu’azu, is seated here, and he will bear me witness. Whatever we achieved then, was a collective effort.”
An independent report by a risk assessment and consulting firm, SBM Intelligence revealed that in the first year of Tinubu’s administration, between June 2023 and June 2024, no fewer than 7,568 people were abducted in 1,130 incidents across the country.
“In that same period, kidnappers demanded at least the sum of N10,995,090 (approximately $6,871,931) as ransom but received N1,048,110,000, a mere 9.5 0er cent of the money demanded, indicating that kidnappers have become less targeted in their victimology,” the report said.
The former president further noted that the best form of security is community policing because everyone knows his/her neighbours within the community.
“With that, it is very easy to identify the bad eggs,” he said, making inferences to concerns that the state policing system if adopted is likely to incite highhandedness and abuse of power by some of the state governors.
“We need peace, unity, and collective support in this country if we must move forward. Things can be right and good again in the country. All we need to do is to get united and do things collectively,” he added.
Meanwhile, when the former Obasanjo visited the Bauchi State Council of Traditional Rulers at the Bauchi Emir’s Palace, he also emphasised the importance of community policing in addressing the rising insecurity in the country.