Nigerians may largely be dramatic people, but subjecting the lives of over 200 million citizens to confusion and pain every other week (as a result of insensitive leadership), is the needless drama no one enjoys watching.

Who would think that in the same country where 276 female students were kidnapped from a Secondary School in Chibok seven years ago, 110 school girls would be kidnapped by the same terrorist group, barely 4 years after?

As if it were some natural disaster that is out of human control, the nation woke up this Wednesday, to news of the abduction of about 27 students, 3 staff members and 12 relatives from Government Science College, Kagara, in Niger State.

Reminiscent of the abduction of over 300 pupils in December 2020, from a boys’ secondary boarding school on the outskirts of Kankara, in Katsina State, the sordid tales of Wednesday’s abduction is one of the most worrisome detail for any Nigerian.

The reactions that trailed the attack, reported to have been carried out by bandits who bore rocket-propelled grenades (RPG), expectedly typified the fact that millions of Nigerians are frustrated with the security situation in the country.

So much of criminal activities now happen unchecked in the Northern part of the country; from the insurgency-troubled North East to the Bandit-ravaged North West and now North Central. Considering the scale of these operations and how the government has failed to take decisive actions against the bandits in particular, it speaks of how much danger probably lies ahead.

The latest developments are enough evidence to show that the situation at hand transcends banditry. What kind of bandits carry RPG launchers? What kind of bandits chant ‘praises to God’ after carrying out a criminal action? Rather than focus on quelling dissenting voices or legitimate protests, one would expect the government to tackle the issue frontally and prove that insecurity isn’t the most lucrative business in Nigeria.

Concrete solutions would begin from putting a halt to the payment of ransoms to evil doers, negotiating with them or offering them any kind of amnesty and treat them like the terrorists that they are.

The ultimate solution would be to nip smaller issues of insecurity as they arise and most importantly, ensure that education is given the burning attention it desires; especially in that part of the country.

Oh ye government, unmask this camouflage before it’s too late!

Temidayo Taiwo-Sidiq

Temidayo Taiwo-Sidiq is a Journalist, Political Analyst and Satirist with major interest in Nigerian Politics, Governance and Sports.