Tinubu’s Security Emergency: A Bold Move or a Sign of a Deeper National Crisis?
By: NaijaEnquirer Staff
As Nigeria struggles with escalating terrorist attacks, mass kidnappings and rising fear across communities, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s declaration of a nationwide security emergency has thrust the country into a more confrontational phase against armed groups. The announcement, made on Wednesday, signals a growing sense of urgency within government circles over a crisis many believe is spinning beyond control.
Emergency Measures as Terror Threat Expands
Tinubu’s emergency declaration comes amid intensified operations by armed groups across multiple states. To respond, the President authorised an additional 20,000 police recruits, raising ongoing recruitments to 50,000 officers. He also directed fresh enlistment into the Armed Forces.
To speed deployment, NYSC camps will now serve as temporary police training facilities. Police officers previously assigned to VIP escort duties are to undergo emergency retraining for frontline combat roles.
The President further ordered the Department of State Services (DSS) to deploy trained forest guards and recruit more personnel to flush out terrorists hiding in forest corridors. The message, analysts say, is clear: Nigeria wants more boots on the ground.
Tinubu also warned Nigerians to remain vigilant following high-profile attacks in Kebbi, Borno, Zamfara, Niger, Yobe and Kwara, calling for tighter security around schools, churches and mosques.
The government’s renewed support for state police and insistence on ranching for herders suggest a willingness to confront politically sensitive reforms long avoided in Nigeria’s security debate.
Yet behind the tough rhetoric lies a stark truth: the government is under pressure to prove it still controls a crisis that has persisted for over a decade.
Akinyemi’s Warning: Governance Failures and Fear of Foreign Intervention
While Tinubu announced aggressive measures, elder statesman and former Foreign Affairs Minister, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, delivered a sharper critique of Nigeria’s security reality.
In a bold media interview, Akinyemi accused some governors and government officials of openly accommodating terrorists, noting that armed militants “enter cities with guns for weddings” and are even welcomed by local authorities.
He recommended a sweeping response: a state of emergency, creation of military tribunals, mass recruitment, recall of retired soldiers, and suspension of governors’ immunity during severe security crises.
Akinyemi also warned that prolonged insecurity could trigger foreign military intervention, especially from the United States under former President Donald Trump. He argued Nigeria must appear “deadly serious” to avoid becoming a target of external force.
He described terrorist infiltration across the Northwest and Middle Belt as dangerously close to a national overrun. For him: negotiation has failed; force is now mandatory.
Although he praised recent diplomatic efforts — particularly by the National Security Adviser in Washington — he insisted Nigeria must rely more on internal coordination with community leaders, traditional rulers and clergy if it hopes to stem bloodshed.
The Bigger Picture
Together, Tinubu’s emergency declaration and Akinyemi’s blunt warnings paint the portrait of a nation on the brink. The government is rolling out aggressive measures, but violence continues to expand. Critics fear a future where emergency tactics become normal, without addressing the systemic failures fuelling insecurity.
What is clear is that the pressure on government — from security experts and from fearful citizens — is rising. Whether the latest measures will deliver the breakthrough Tinubu promises is a question the coming months will answer.
