By Kehinde Olatunji
When Retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police Nuhu Ribadu, assumed duties as Nigeria’s National Security Adviser (NSA), he pledged to subdue insecurity and stabilise the world’s most populous black nation.
Ribadu took over from former NSA Babagana Monguno, following his appointment by President Bola Tinubu on June 19.
According to him, the administration of President Tinubu had the enormous responsibility of securing Nigeria, stabilising it and ensuring peace in all parts of the country.
“This is work for Nigerians, and we intend to continue with what has been done. We will stabilise this country, we will secure our country, and we will make Nigeria peaceful because we believe the time has come for this country to enjoy peace, restore order and the rule of law just like any other country in the world.
“Securing the nation is a continuous process. We will look at what has been done and build on it. We will count on your support in the course of discharging our responsibilities.
“Mr President has a huge commitment to securing every inch of our country. We will work with all stakeholders to deliver on this vision.
“This enormous task of securing our country is that of all Nigerians and all friends of Nigeria,” he said.
But the question is, has Ribadu delivered on his promises in the past 100 days of his administration?
Since his assumption of office, the military has neutralised 817 terrorists, apprehended 1,326 criminals and rescued 721 hostages in different operations across the country.
Those apprehended include 42 kidnappers, 231 terrorists’ collaborators, 33 armed robbers, 80 cattle rustlers, 325 militias, 27 rail vandals, 73 gunrunners and 191 suspected oil thieves.
A total of 4,560 terrorists and their families surrendered to troops in the Northeast during the period. The troops also recovered 501 weapons, 3,577 livestock, 3,269 assorted kinds of ammunition, and 674 other equipment within the period under review.
In the North East, the troops of Operation HADIN KAI neutralised 240 terrorists, arrested 276 terrorists and collaborators, and rescued 147 kidnapped hostages, as well as surrendered 4,560 combatant fighters with their families to troops. They also recovered 169 assorted weapons, 1,195 assorted ammunition and 199 other equipment, comprising 57 AK47 rifles, one GPMG, 2 HK21 rifles, one FN rifle, one G3 rifle, one pistol, 22 dane guns, one double barrel, 73 AK47 magazines and three hand grenades. It also includes two LMG magazines, one RPG tube, two tear gas launchers, 674 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 500 rounds of 7.62mm x 54mm, 20 PKM rounds, one cartridge, two vehicles, 29 motorcycles, 47 bicycles, 18 mobile phones, 13 steering rod and pumps, five gearboxes and four baofeng radios and 158 livestock.
In the North Central, the troops of Operation Safe Haven neutralised 94 terrorists, arrested 477 suspects and rescued 76 kidnapped hostages, as well as recovered 82 assorted weapons and 760 assorted ammunition. The breakdown includes 20 AK47 rifles, five revolvers, 27 fabricated rifles, six fabricated pistols, 13 dane guns, five pistols, two pump actions, six AK47 magazines, 523 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 190 rounds of 5.5mm ammo, 31 rounds 9mm ammo, 18 cartridges and 1,722 livestock.
The troops of Operation Whirl Stroke also neutralised 83 terrorists, arrested 104 suspects and rescued 18 kidnapped hostages and also recovered 37 weapons, 68 assorted ammunition and 127 items and recovered two AK47 rifles, one FN rifle, five locally fabricated pistols, two dane guns, one pistol, 15 AK47 magazines, two G3 magazines, two FN magazines, one GPMG barrel, one Ak47 barrels, three rifle butts and one locally fabricated bullet.
In addition, troops recovered four woodland camouflage, 15 motorcycles, nine mobile phones, six vehicles, five cutlasses, two pairs of black boots, one fragmental jacket, one generator set, three knives, two machetes and one saw and metal. In the North West, the troops of Operation Hadarin Daji neutralised 248 terrorists, arrested 116 suspected terrorists and rescued 359 kidnapped hostages as well as recovered a total of 67 assorted weapons, 926 assorted ammunition and 160 other incriminating items.
In the South-South, the troops of Operation Delta Safe neutralised 69 combatants, arrested 191 oil theft collaborators and rescued 12 kidnapped hostages. The troops also intercepted 6.6 million litres of stolen crude oil, 3.5 million litres of illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), 188,650 kerosene and 65,600 litres of petrol. The troops also discovered and destroyed 249 boats, 28 pumping machines, and three vessels, as well as recovered a total of 51 assorted weapons.
In the South East, the troops of Operation UDO KA neutralised 80 combatants, arrested 162 IPOB/ESN criminals and rescued 109 kidnapped hostages. The troops also recovered 63 assorted weapons, 320 assorted ammunition and 166 other incriminating items within the period under review.
President of the Coalition for Peace, a Non-Governmental Organisation, Malam Adamu Haruna commended President Bola Tinubu and Ribadu for the improved security across the nation.
He said the inter-agency collaboration initiated by the two has improved the peace and security across the country in the last few months.
Haruna attributed the improved harmonious working relationship to why terrorists and criminals are currently on the run.
In commending the efforts of Mr President and the NSA, Haruna said that such had instilled confidence in the minds of the farmers who are now returning to farm this rainy season for planting.
He said that was a departure from the previous administration when insecurity was the nightmare of everyone; as farmers and vulnerable residents in communities got killed, kidnapped and their women raped.
“This administration has been responding swiftly to distress calls, particularly acting on intelligence reports leading to attacks and arrests of criminals.
“The inter agency cooperation and harmonious working relationship have led to improvement in security across the nation.
“There is no doubt about this fact which President Tinubu and the NSA should be commended for.
“It is worth saying that farmers are back to farm because they have confidence in the government’s prompt response to security threats, obviously lessening security challenges.
“Last week, the revelation of the high number of terrorists killed by this administration reflects the seriousness of the government in tackling insecurity,” the group added.
He went further and said that ‘there cannot be anything equal to prompt security response and taking action on intelligence, a development that led to killing of a large number of terrorists since Tinubu took over power on May 29.
“The increased security at the nation’s borders has also reduced the incidences of kidnapping in the North West and North East geopolitical zones of the country.”
He, therefore, urged the security agents not to relent, assuring them that Nigerians are willing to give them maximum support and encouragement.
On his part, a former Kaduna Central senator, Shehu Sani, said Nigerians expected the new NSA to employ a different approach to achieve a better result in the fight against insecurity in the country. He tasked Ribadu to end the criminality of terrorism, banditry, killings, and kidnappings across the country. He urged Ribadu to bring innovations that will ensure the protection of schools and farmers from terrorists.
A special adviser in the legal department of the office of the NSA, Anthony Oluborode, said the goal of the NSA office is to ensure that the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) takes full control of internal security without any need to invite the military.
He said achieving the goal would help the army to focus better on external security and terrorism, adding that there must be closer interagency collaboration as well as capacity building to ensure success in the fight against insecurity.
“National security is a collective effort where all ministries, departments, agencies, civil society groups and citizens have to work collaboratively to ensure a secure nation
“Community support is also critical for the success of curbing insecurity. The goal is to get the police to take full charge of internal security without having to invite the military to wade into the internal security of the country so that they can focus on external security.”
He said there is a need to strengthen the legislative framework and review strategies and policies on security.
Oluborode noted that the government would spare nothing to ensure synergy among all security agencies.
He added that it was important to work with the media to reach a wide audience to ensure that any information on security was accurate and not fake news.
Since his appointment, Ribadu has been emphasising the importance of curbing crude oil theft and losses to the country.
At the tail end of the previous administration, Monguno inaugurated a Special Investigative Panel on Oil Theft/Losses in Nigeria on 6th of December, 2022.
The panel, chaired by retired Major-General Barry Ndiomu, traversed the country, especially the Niger Delta region, in search of answers to the questions posed by the incessant crude oil theft, which has characterised the exploration and marketing of Nigeria’s petroleum resources.
According to a statement by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), during the submission of the panel’s report on 28 March, some observations were made.
It was observed that crude oil losses arose from a lack of the proper reporting of crude oil production, illegal refining, theft from well-heads and diversion from sophisticated pipeline networks.
The losses were attributed to absence of a robust industry-wide metering system and an unworkable security arrangement.
Confusing roles of regulatory agencies were also cited as one of the reasons the detection of theft/losses was difficult.
In 2022, the country’s crude production struggled to exceed one million barrels per day, leading to concerns over loss of revenue, environment degradation, pipeline vandalism and the general impact on the economy.
However, through a collaborative effort coordinated by ONSA, there is a positively hopeful prospect that the present administration can stem the tide of the heinous crime called oil theft.
In June, the Nigerian Navy said it had intensified its war against oil theft and related maritime crimes on the waterways in the Niger Delta.
A combined team of anti-oil theft troops recently uncovered a major illegal oil refining site at Owahwa community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State.
During the raid, the troops discovered 35 modular ovens, three fabricated reservoirs, 30 dug-out reservoirs and 75 galvanised pipes.
It was reported that apart from revenue loss, the operators of illegal refineries cause environmental degradation because after stealing small quantities of crude oil from vandalised pipelines, they leave volumes to spill and pollute the environment.
In the June crude oil production report of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the country’s crude oil earnings rose to over N1.68 trillion in June, following an increase in the country’s output in May.
The report majorly attributed the increase to concerted efforts by security officials and oil operators, which means the fight against oil theft is gaining ground.
