The heat is on criminal elements in the country. Some of them are now singing. Bello Turji, a dangerous element, is making some useful points. I hope someone is listening?
The ‘Insecurity’ situation in the country is proving costly this period of yuletide. Apprehension rules the air.
Many more PDP governors are jumping ship. But why?
After Bello Turji’s exposé, what next?
A few days ago, a notorious terrorist, Bello Turji, who is on the wanted list of security agencies, said that he held peace talks with officials of the Zamfara State government during the previous administration led by Bello Matawalle, who is now Minister of State for Defence.
The bandit leader also accused former political leaders in Zamfara and Sokoto states of fuelling violence in the region, alleging that they were armed groups and encouraged the formation of vigilantes that targeted Fulani communities.
“We say openly that former governors of Zamfara and Sokoto, alongside Ahmed Sani Yerima, are responsible for the calamities that befell these states,” he said.
The reaction over the exposé was electric, as it seemed to have put flesh on the skeleton of allegations swirling around the person of Matawalle in relation to the burgeoning insecurity in his part of the country.
But beyond whatever Turji said against the former governors, the question many Nigerians are asking is, what is the federal government doing about the so-called sponsors of insecurity across the country?
Before the Turji exposé, as it were, the federal government had, on a number of occasions, threatened to name and shame individuals fanning the embers of banditry and general insecurity in Nigeria. Some time ago, fingers were pointed at certain individuals, but there were no arrests, no prosecution, and the matter mysteriously eclipsed.
Turji even suggested that the actors he mentioned should be arrested and investigated. With this lead, Abuja cannot claim it lacks evidence to do a thorough investigation and bring the sponsors to book.
Until the federal government begins to act beyond mere verbal words, the hide-and-seek game will continue, and the country will be worse for it. There cannot be two governments in Nigeria!
High cost of insecurity at yuletide
Nigeria is bogged down by the lingering insecurity in the country. Energies and resources that should have been invested to speed up the growth and development of the country are unfortunately being channelled toward taming the monster called insecurity.
At no other time are the negative effects of insecurity so badly felt as during the period of Christmas and New Year celebrations. It is the period when Nigeria records the highest volume of travel – intra-city journeys.
The location of some states makes them hot spots for criminal elements. This is why Kogi State, for instance, bounded by several states, is always in the news for cases of bandit attacks.
Normally, at this period, there are heightened commercial and business activities across the country. More goods move from one part of the country to the other as people rush for last-minute purchases and transactions.
Over the years, this period has become dreadful for many people. The reason is that those who are supposed to move from one part of the country to another for business transactions are held back for fear of being kidnapped or killed. Farmers who were supposed to engage in farming activities to make a bumper harvest, which they would sell to get other things they need for the festivities, are hamstrung by the reason for insecurity. Livestock farmers and some other farmers who produce chicken and fish, among others, are not able to do so in large quantities.
Today, while the price of rice is trending downwards, the prices of food condiments are hitting the roof. The yuletide is a period that affords many Nigerians the opportunity to visit their villages and reunite with their kin. This year, there are still many Nigerians who have ruled out the plan for such journeys for fear of uncertainty on the highways.
The fear of insecurity is made worse by the poor state of many roads across the country, which increases the chances of road mishaps and kidnapping.
With the high cost of air tickets, the most affordable means of transportation still remains the road. Despite the fears, many citizens, particularly those who have important programmes – such as burials and weddings – will still brave all the odds.
Nigerians are looking forward to a time when apprehension would no longer envelop the country at Yuletide, a period that ordinarily should be for celebration.
Whatever it takes to make Nigerian roads and highways safe again is the prayer of the long-suffering citizens!
For PDP governors: The defection bug still bites on
While the country boils with the increasing wave of abductions and general insecurity in some parts of the country, some state governors of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) are preoccupied with the thought of safeguarding their political future.
In the last few days, two governors of the PDP, Sim Fubara and Agbu Kefas of Rivers and Taraba, respectively, have made a public show of their divorce from the umbrella association.
Both Fubara and Kefas have presented themselves to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at different times. What is slightly different is that Kefas met with Tinubu on December 1, 2025, before he publicly announced his defection.
Feelers have it that in the next few days, Caleb Mutfwang, governor of Plateau State, will fully become a member of the APC, as he has already surrendered to the National Chairman of the party, pending when he will be presented to the president at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Mutfwang’s defection is sure to upset the apple cart in the APC in Plateau, as a good number of the party chieftains are said to be uncomfortable with him crossing over to the broom association.
Some observers have also said that the governor’s defection may hurt him, as he may not be able to secure the APC’s ticket for a re-election in 2027.
The insinuation is that the gale of defections may have been precipitated by greed and a grand ploy by some defectors to keep their “loot” without any probe.
Some of the defecting governors are facing allegations of corrupt enrichment of themselves and running their states like personal estates.
The defections seem to synchronise with what now appears to have become the mantra of the APC that whoever comes into its fold has his/her sins forgiven, as propounded by Adams Oshiomhole, a former national chairman of the party and now a serving senator.
With his defection to the APC, Fubara seems to have squared up with his “tormentor-in-chief”, Nyesom Wike. The battle for 2027 in Rivers may be set. Being on the ground and effectively in control of the state, Abuja will be dealing directly with him and not through an emissary or third party.
He will communicate directly with the president as the leader of the APC. For instance, on the day he surrendered to the APC, he went directly to the president and not with Wike. The photos published, at least, did not have the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister.
Political watchers are already saying that Wike’s power may have eventually been whittled down, and his influence on Fubara may not be as suffocating as it used to be in the days to come. Fingers crossed!
