Even with the enormous resources that abound in northern Nigeria, it is still the region with the highest population of people wallowing in extreme poverty. The rate of poverty in the North is quite alarming. To say this defies logic is an understatement because the region has everything it takes to escape poverty. It is a fertile land with varied agricultural products and mineral resources such as tin, barite, zinc, limestone, columbite, lead, gypsum, and a huge population. Yet, the region wallows in abject poverty. Nevertheless, it is very easy to fathom the complex poverty situation in the North.
Insecurity dwarfs all challenges
Although Northern Nigeria is plagued by many challenges, all of the region’s problems combined pale in significance compared with the raging insecurity exemplified by the activities of terrorists who kill, maim, rape and kidnap for ransom. These renegades have made life brutish for most rural residents, making farming, which is the mainstay of the region’s economy, impossible.
There is a clear nexus between the raging insecurity which has plagued the region for over a decade and the intolerably high rate of poverty, out-of-school children, malnutrition and other diseases that have unfortunately become the defining features of the North. The region today is a testament to this time-tested saying that nothing, absolutely nothing, strives in an atmosphere devoid of security.
In most communities in the northern states, especially the worst-hit states of Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger, families have been displaced, villages deserted, farms and means of livelihood abandoned, with many living in a state of perpetual fear. The sum total of these and the fact that so many families still have their loved ones held captives by these renegades means that life for those directly affected couldn’t have been any worse.
In some communities in Katsina and some of the hard-hit states, marketers only go to the market when escorted by soldiers. The question is, how long will this escort continue? But that is the sad reality of the North today.
Respite on the way?
But there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel, as the military’s recent offensive against these terror elements has been yielding positive results. At least the murder of the bandits’ kingpins and other members symbolizes hope and may signal an end to these long years of senseless killing of innocent, law-abiding and peace-loving Nigerians by renegades who have turned abduction and killings into a business venture.
The latest onslaught led to the killing of Kachallah Buzu, widely described as Bello Turji’s boss. Of course, Baleri Fakai, one of Turji’s allies, was deleted three days later. The military also successfully took out Halilu Sububu and several other bandits believed to be members of his gang in a clinical clearance operation. It is on record that Sububu kidnapped and murdered numerous persons just as he was paid the ransom, running into hundreds of millions of naira. As a notorious bandits’ kingpin, Sububu commanded hundreds of bandits and was said to have trained Bello Turji.
These are, indeed, commendable efforts and may as well signpost a near end of these terror elements who have made life a living hell for many in Nigeria.
Understandably, all eyes are now on Bello Turji, the most wanted terror kingpin who, like the duo of Fakai and Buzu, has turned an aspect of Zamfara-Sokoto forests into his safe haven, from where he continues to unleash mayhem on citizens of these two states. No doubt, the killing of these bandits’ kingpins is a feat worthy of celebration. It is clear that this is possible because of President Bola Tinubu’s decision to deploy the country’s military chiefs to the North West.
The war against terrorists, especially in the states of Zamfara, Kaduna, Katsina, Sokoto and Niger, has been on for more than ten years, recording startling statistics of persons killed by these terrorists. But will the recent death of these kingpins and the looming close-in on Bello Turji mark an end to this war?
For a total end…
While the recent onslaught and the attendant killings of bandits’ kingpins is a commendable move and may well signal the end of the current battle against these terror elements, ending banditry in the region and effectively restoring its lost glory is beyond the mere killing of the Sububus, Fakais, Turjis and their foot soldiers.
One fundamental step to ending this madness is to go after those aiding it, no matter how remote. While the bandits live in the forest, they have persons who aid and abet them. Unfortunately, these persons cut across different strata of society. There are copious reports of traditional rulers aiding these criminals, just as there is news of security operatives also involved. There are also instances of residents serving as informants to them, just as public officeholders provide cover for these renegades. These, in earnest, are the real terrorists, and taking them out should also be accorded top priority, pure and simple. Besides taking those aiding this crime out, Northern state governors and all the political leaders in the region must address factors that make the environment conducive to banditry.
To totally end banditry in the North, we must end almajirci, provide jobs for the teeming unemployed youths, and make education more affordable and accessible to many, especially the mass of uneducated people currently tenanting most rural communities in the region.
Importantly, it is clear that to end this raging insecurity, the North must be ready to adopt the cause-and-effect methodology of addressing challenges. The focus should be on how one event leads to another. We must effectively analyze how one or more effects result from a particular cause and how one or more causes lead to a particular effect.
And for the North, it is simple. Neglect of education or, at best, giving it lip service leads to the region having an army of unemployed persons who are ready tools for self-serving politicians. Deprived of education, these youths lacked the ability required for critical thinking and modern-day jobs, and since money flows on the side of value, they are poor because they can rarely offer any value. But because they must eat and address other basic human needs, the only option available is to abuse drugs and turn to crime. This is how we end up with a region that has the highest number of youths who abuse drugs. This narrative must change, and ensuring that requires doing more than the current onslaught against bandits.