Nigeria’s security crisis deepens as mass abductions surge, calls for State Police grow

Nigeria’s security system is buckling under the weight of widespread banditry, resurgent terrorist networks, and a booming kidnap-for-ransom economy worth millions of dollars.

Despite repeated assurances from President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the alarming rise in mass abductions and a sudden high-profile resignation at the Ministry of Defence have underscored the widening gap between government promises and measurable security outcomes.

Although the President has not made a formal declaration of national emergency, the scale and speed of the crisis justify his increasingly urgent tone. Fresh data from official and independent monitors paint a grim picture of the current security landscape.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) reported 570 killings and 278 kidnappings in April 2025 alone, warning that Nigeria is experiencing an “unprecedented surge in human rights violations.”

Conflict-tracking organisation ACAPS recorded that between November 17 and 24, 2025, more than 402 people—mostly schoolchildren—were abducted across Northern states such as Niger, Kebbi, and Kwara. This included the brazen kidnapping of about 315 students and staff of St. Mary’s Catholic School in Niger State.

Compounding the concern, analysts documented a 49% rise in conflict-related fatalities between January–April 2024 and the same period in 2025, signalling a steady collapse of security in rural and peri-urban regions.

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Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF), Governor Muhammadu Yahaya, described the situation as a convergence of insecurity and poverty threatening the region’s survival.

He pointed to entrenched causes such as underdevelopment, illiteracy, mismanaged resources, climate change, and the neglect of millions of out-of-school children, insisting that the crisis requires a comprehensive approach rather than purely military interventions.

The growing frustration over deteriorating security culminated in the resignation of Defence Minister Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar on December 1, 2025. Although he cited “ill-health” as the reason, his departure followed weeks of intense public criticism over the surge in mass kidnappings.

Badaru, a former Jigawa State governor with a background in business and politics, had long faced scrutiny over his lack of military or intelligence experience.

President Tinubu responded swiftly by nominating General Christopher Gwabin Musa, former Chief of Defence Staff, as the new Minister of Defence. Musa, who retired in October 2025, is widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most capable military leaders.

He previously commanded the successful counter-insurgency operation Operation Hadin Kai and won the internationally recognised Colin Powell Award for Soldiering in 2012.

In his nomination letter to the Senate, the President expressed confidence in General Musa’s ability to “strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture.”

Critics fear that appointing a recently retired military chief to the top civilian defence position could blur lines of oversight and centralize too much influence in the military hierarchy.

Analysts argue that the collapse of security is rooted in systemic issues—poor funding, corruption in defence procurement, political interference—meaning that even a highly decorated military officer may struggle to enact meaningful change without broader institutional reforms.

Amid the turmoil, Northern governors and traditional rulers have revived calls for the establishment of State Police, insisting that the centralized system can no longer handle the scale and complexity of local security threats. The NSGF described state policing as “a critical and effective mechanism” for restoring order.

Security experts warn that unless Nigeria tackles the roots of insecurity—swift prosecution of criminals, decentralization of policing, and aggressive socioeconomic investments to reduce vulnerability—the crisis will continue to pose the country’s most significant national challenge.