Opinions
That Presidential Reprimand of the Military and Matters Arising

That Presidential Reprimand of the Military and Matters Arising
By: Chidi Omeje
While briefing the media after the National Security Council meeting at the State House on Thursday, April 21, 2022 the National Security Adviser, Maj Gen Babagana Monguno expressed President Buhari’s dissatisfactions with military for not being able to bring security challenges in the country under control. He also rightfully chastised Governor El Rufai of Kaduna State for his many careless talks and unhelpful grandstanding.
Gen Monguno, as a matter of fact, fielded many questions from the media but what he did not tell them was his own role as the NSA in all of these. Glaring as his incompetence and artful mastery in evading media and public scrutiny in the past seven years of dreadful insecurity across the country are, that is not the crux of this intervention. Let us focus.
One might not be in position to fault the Commander-in-Chief in his decision to lay the entire blame for the intractability of surmounting the security challenges assailing the country on the military, especially as one is not receiving the kind of intel report available to him; however, it is apropos to remind him of few things.
First of all, it is important to understand where we are getting the whole thing wrong to be able to have a full grasp of why insecurity not only persists but degenerates dangerously. The truth of the matter is that our internal security operations mechanism has been bastardized to the point that current security architecture is bound to be ineffective and incapable of producing the kind of result we are yearning for.
That all manner of internal security challenges that task our national security are popping up in various degrees, intensities and complexities across the country should not come to anyone as surprise. It is actually expected; and in fact, no nation in the world today is immune to the reality of its own internal contradictions or emerging security challenges. What makes or marks the difference, however, is how the security system in place is fashioned or implemented to confront any security situation. This to a large extent determines the level to which such security violation can easily be detected, confronted and surmounted or how fast and far reaching such challenge can fester, deteriorate or conflagrate.
Nigeria’s model of internal security operation is such that the Nigerian Police Force is the lead agency in dealing with any security challenge. In other words, the Nigeria Police is the first responders to any internal security violations; and not just responding first but taking charge and ensuring that the security challenge is nipped in the bud through intelligence undertakings. To boost this policing effort, the system created the secret police otherwise known as the State Security Services which will work in aid of the police to uncover and deal with crimes and criminalities that could imperil the state. There is also the Civil Defence which was established to compliment the efforts of the Police.
However, when the security challenge is such that is beyond the capacity of the police to contain, the civil authority, in exercise of its constitutional duties of providing security of lives and property to the citizens, is compelled to invite the military to act in aid of the police to deal with the situation. By this design and process, the Nigerian military is the last line of defence in our internal security operations mechanism. What this means in actual sense is that the military will only be called in when the security challenge is such that is beyond the capacity of the police to deal with.
Such security challenges like insurgency or terrorism which threatens the sovereignty of the state or which its perpetrators deploy combat grade weapons that have the capacity to overwhelm the police, are the kind of challenges that naturally demands military intervention. But that is not what is obtained now.
The police have become so dysfunctional, ineffective and watered down that its core responsibility as the lead agency in dealing with internal security challenges has been abdicated to the military. Almost every crime in the books in Nigeria today is handled by the military. The military are deployed to man elections; they are deployed to chase armed robbers, to stop cultists, to confront kidnappers; they are deployed to quell protests and even to chase street hawkers around! They are currently deployed to 36 out of the 36 states of the federation to do the work they were not in actual sense trained to do.
The military is trained to kill and dominate territorial areas and not to chase around criminals and deviants. Our military is over stretched not with fighting wars with external aggressors or internal insurgents but by the wanton deployment of its troops to do the work which the civil police has failed to do. The indisputable fact is that this unrestrained deployment of our troops to deal with every security violation in the land is rubbing off negatively on their professionalism and opening them up to civilian idiosyncrasies and foibles.
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Even more dangerous is the reality that owing to this over-use, our Armed Forces have hardly had time to conduct basic joint trainings that would have strengthened the synergy between and among the tri-service institution. In fact, the last time the Nigerian Armed Forces conducted Joint Operations Exercises (JOPEX) was in 2010 when they organized the Operation Ologun Meta around the Okitipupa axis in Ondo state and adjoining areas.
How then are we expecting to see a very efficient military that will win wars for us when we deny them of such important trainings and exercises by always overstretching them with ceaseless internal security operations? How come that in today’s Nigeria, whenever there is any report of security challenge, our instinctive gaze is at the military? Is the military trained to take care of our everyday security infractions? What about the civil police? What about the intelligence community?
The follow-up questions to ask are, what are we doing with our civil police? How much are they contributing in dealing with the multiple internal security challenges assailing our country today? What is stopping the office of the National Security Adviser from taking charge and spearheading a through reorganization of our internal security mechanism in order to restore order in the functions and expectations of each of the security, intelligence and response agencies? Why can’t we try out the state police option to see if it will be more effective dealing with the hydra-headed contemporary security challenges? Why must our police be rendered impotent and grossly ineffective?
Why must about 50% of Nigerian Police personnel be deployed to secure individuals and private concerns leaving our spaces ungoverned and under-policed? Why are our Mobile Police personnel deployed to carry handbags for politicians, their wives and concubines and even celebrities while our communities, streets and farm lands are left to the whimsies of crimes and criminalities? And by the way, what did we eventually do with the SARS officers that were recently disbanded? Were they simply disarmed and deployed into various police stations or where are they exactly?
What about the Civil Defence Corps? What exactly are they contributing in all of these multiple internal security challenges confronting us? Has anybody ever seen personnel of Civil Defence at work after 5 pm in the evening? Of what use are they really?
More questions: why can’t we make better use of these security elements by deploying them to areas where the military are conducting operations so that they can at least provide security in liberated communities while the troops advance further? Why can’t we retrain and equip them so that they can become intelligence assets, knowing that intelligence holds the key to most of these security challenges? Why can’t we think outside the box and be bold enough to tinker with and we fix the obviously weak and ineffective internal security operations mechanism that has not provided needed desired results?
*Chidi Omeje is the Editor-in-Chief, Security Digest (www.securitydigestng.com)
That Presidential Reprimand of the Military and Matters Arising
Opinions
“Guguwar Buhari “Is Gone: The End of Handout Votes in Arewa Politics

“Guguwar Buhari “Is Gone: The End of Handout Votes in Arewa Politics
By Isaac Abrak
In the wake of Nigeria’s 2015 general elections, a powerful Hausa phrase emerged: “Guguwar Buhari” —literally Buhari’s whirlwind.It aptly captured the tidal wave of support that swept General Muhammadu Buhari and many others into power under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The whirlwind was so intense that it carried along even political unknowns—individuals with no record, reputation, or merit—simply because they stood beside Buhari, either on campaign posters or on the ballot.
That year, the APC logo became a winning ticket. Voters, driven by their deep trust in Buhari, voted for any name attached to it. The former general himself fueled this trend with his now-famous campaign line: “APC sama da kasa”—vote APC from top to bottom. And that’s exactly what the Talakawa (the masses), particularly in the North, did. From the presidency to the National Assembly, governorships, state assemblies, and local councils, a wave of victories was handed out—not earned—thanks to one man’s charisma.
But mere months into Buhari’s administration, another Hausa phrase quietly entered public discourse: “Guguwar Buhari ta kwashi yayi”—“Buhari’s whirlwind picked up garbage”. The people began to wake up. The same whirlwind that propelled leaders into power had also brought in many unqualified, self-serving, and underperforming politicians. Disillusionment replaced euphoria. The Talakawa realized that too many of their elected representatives were unworthy of the offices they held.
By 2019, the tide was turning. Buhari may have secured a second term, but many of those who had previously clung to his coattails were rejected by a more conscious electorate. The blind loyalty was fading. Voters began asking tougher questions and demanding results. Northern Nigeria was slowly moving away from political sentimentalism toward issue-based engagement.
In 2023, another dimension to Buhari’s political capital emerged—*tthe myth of his “sacred 12 million votes. For over a decade, Buhari had consistently pulled around 12 million votes in presidential elections, largely from the North. This voting bloc became a prized political asset. Every major candidate, including now-President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, sought to harness this number. Whether he succeeded or not is a matter for future political autopsy. But what’s no longer in doubt is that the *whirlwind* that delivered that power is now gone.
Some politicians still believe they can inherit this legacy—that they can simply stand in Buhari’s shoes and command the North’s votes. But such thinking is delusional.
As one guest rightly noted during a special NTA broadcast on the day of Buhari’s burial, those 12 million votes weren’t earned overnight. They were built over decades of public service—beginning with Buhari’s tenure as Military Governor of the old North-Eastern State, followed by his service as Minister of Petroleum, Head of State, Chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund, and eventually President. It was a reputation forged through discipline, integrity, and patriotic service.
Even so, Buhari’s aura wasn’t untouchable. As his presidency wore on, the same Talakawa who had once idolized him began expressing disappointment. He was booed at campaign rallies in Kano and Bauchi in 2019, and most memorably in Maiduguri in 2020, when he visited after a Boko Haram attack. Angry residents chanted “Ba mu da shugaba!” (“We have no leader!”) and “Ba mayi!” (we don’t want!). His controversial border closure policy, intended to curb smuggling, had instead led to food scarcity and economic hardship. If “Mai Gaskiya” (The Truthful One) could be jeered, how much more any politician attempting to coast on his reputation?
Today, the Northern voter is changing. The Talakawa want more than slogans. They now demand:
- Functional hospitals
- Affordable, quality education
- Food security
- Reliable electricity
- Clean water
- And, above all, security from terrorism and violence
These are not campaign fantasies—they are expected deliverables. Any leader who wants to command the North must first prove they can deliver these essentials. The North is at a crossroads. It must move from dependency to productivity. Leaders must rise to this challenge or risk being discarded by a growing wave of enlightened voters.
Indeed, there is evidence of this awakening everywhere. On social media,young Northerners—many of them Hausa-Fulani Muslims—are openly rejecting traditional political formulas.Some now declare they would rather vote for a Christian-Christian ticket than a Muslim-Muslim one, if it means better governance. It’s tempting to dismiss this as fringe sentiment—but the message is spreading fast. And it’s reshaping public consciousness.
Let’s be clear: Buhari’s 12 million votes pampered a generation of politicians. Many rode on his back without offering anything meaningful to the people. That era is now behind us. The Northern voter is evolving. Political awareness is rising. And with it, a new demand for performance, integrity, and accountability.
Whoever aspires to lead the North, command the Talakawa, and inherit Buhari’s political legacy must offer more than recycled slogans. They must present tangible evidence of good governance not just political promises.
This shift isn’t a crisis—it’s a victory for democracy. And perhaps, it’s the greatest legacy Buhari leaves behind: a Nigeria where voters are thinking for themselves. If you doubt it, just wait for 2027. The Talakawa will speak again—and this time, even louder.
In death, Buhari has unexpectedly revived his 2015 campaign slogan:“Chanji Dole! no need to translate this one.
Isaac Abrak is a Hostile Environment Journalist, a One Nigerianist, and Chairman of the Northern Christian Youth Professionals.
isaaclinus@gmail.com
Opinions
THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW

THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW.
By: A G Abubakar
The Biu Forum was a child of circumstances. It was born in response to the fall out from the August 1991 state creation exercise by the Babangida military regime which initially located Biu in Yobe but removed same after a couple of days. To push for a redress or for an answer, the Forum was initiated. Its drivers came from the entire spectrum of the present day Biu Emirate and Shani Chiefdom, who were then resident in Lagos, the former federal capital.The first meeting was held in October 1991 at Block 4, Flat 3, the Bar Beach Towers, Victoria Island.
The inaugural and subsequent meetings of the forum were attended by such personalities as Shettima Saleh, Saidu Pindar, Tahir A.Musa, PC Abdullahi Mohammed, Musa Yamta, Hassan Bdliya, John Balami, Audu Shettima, Sanda Usman, Adamu Abdullahi, Musa Shani, Major (now Gen) Usman, Muhammad Dili, Ahmed Kuru, Jibrin A.Jibrin, A.G.Abubakar (Convener along with Musa Yamta), Mamman Audu, Paul Mari, Ishaku Abdullahi, Sale Mari Maina, Major. Ibrahim Bantam, Samaila Mamman, Sule Usman, C.D.Gali, and many more. These foundation members nurtured the Forum for years in Lagos before the seat of government was formally moved to Abuja.
Some of them are of blessed memory (may the Almighty grant them His mercy, Ameen), though a lot more are still living. The major objective of the forum at inception was to build a unity of purpose to tackle the challenges facing Biu Emirate, particularly its excision from the then newly created Yobe State. Plus, the need to call for attention to the brazen discriminations visited upon Biu people in the state’s civil service, while also pursuing the creation of a Savannah State. Same, with extending moral and material supports to victims of natural disasters and others like the then Waka-Biu crisis.
It would be recalled that after the Babangida military government decided to split old the Borno State, late General Abacha, then the Chief of Army Staff and the defacto number “two” man, who happened to be of Borno extraction, was assigned to consult with the Shehu as well as other opinion leaders on the government’s proposal to curve out a new state out of Borno. Late Bunu Sherrif, a son of the soil (Goniri), who was then serving as Minister of Labour among others, was to serve as a facilitator. The rough edges were therefore smoothened.
Eventually, Yobe was created. The configuration of which comprised three emirates, namely Biu, Fika, and Bade. Borno and Bama emirates were to remain as the New Borno State. The number of local governments was equally balanced at 22 each. Now, it is lopsidedly 17 and 27 LGAs for Yobe and Borno, respectively.
Along the line, some forces opposed to the inclusion of Biu emerged. The first one was the supposed friction between the Emirs of Biu and Fika regarding the order of protocol. A smokescreen, however, because the real reason was that Fika Emirate was promised the State capital (precisely Potiskum), but that was if Biu wasn’t part of the equation. The other reason was that Biu and Borno Emirates had a historical tie that made the duo almost conjoined. This was also untenable in that Ngazargamo that served as the capital of the old Kanem-Borno was severed into Yobe State. In the end, Biu remains part of Borno.
This development polarised the citizens of Biu Emirate into two. The Elders were not so favourably disposed towards leaving Borno, while the larger youth groups were at home with Yobe.
The advantages they averred included the possibility of playing more dominant political and economic roles in the new state, given the fact that Biu used to hold and still holds the Deputy Governor portfolio in Borno. The emirates (Fika and Biu) equally serve as the manpower base of the region . State politics could turn out to be like Adamawa, where all ethnic groups and/or stripes of faith can become the number one citizen of the state. The Emir of Biu would naturally be the most senior, in addition.
Based on the foregoing, Biu made a case for inclusion or, better still, a re-inclusion into Yobe. A move that was resisted vehemently by certain quarters under the umbrella of BEDA. Others who lent their voices included the Birma, Galadima Stanley Balami, PC Ali Biu, and Alhaji Ibrahim Damchida, all of blessed memory.
The Biu citizens who were pushing for the readjustment initially got the support of His Royal Highness, the Revered Mai Umar, who gracefully endorsed the demand document titled, “A Call For the Adjustment of Biu Emirate into Yobe State.” Or rather agreed for the document to be endorsed on his behalf, which was done. However, under pressure from all corners, His Royal Highness had to reconsider his support, as the Emirate found itself in a difficult situation. It was this development and regardless of the push back that the Biu Forum was formed as an alternative platform to still pursue the inclusion of Biu and Shani into Yobe State.
A petition to the government, was subsequently produced and forwarded. And to get a wider publicity and forestall suppression the Forum’s document was sent to the press . The rested influencial national newspaper, the Sunday Concord of 6th October 1991 carried the entire document. Yours faithfully picked the bill.
One of the the committed and highly articulate members of the Forum at the time, Alh. Muhammed Shehu Birma had his relationship with his principal, the Hon. Minister, Bunu Sheriff strained because of his role and support. Alh. Birma was one of the Special Assistants to the Minister who worked tirelessly to obtain the concurrence of major stakeholders to buy into the Forum’s activities.
When the misunderstanding so created on account of the state creation seemed unabating, formal meetings were called by the late elder statesman Alh. Damcida at his Probyn road, Ikoyi, home to sort things out. The “family” gathering enjoyed the presence of late Dr.Saidu Muhammad, PC Ali Biu, A.G.Abubakar, Muhammad S.Birma, Amb. Saidu Pindar, Alhaji Madu Biu, Shettima Saleh, with apologies from Dr.Bukar Usman.
One of the resolutions that came out of the series of dialogues was an undertaking by Mallam to seek an audience with General Abacha for possible reconsideration of the petition. The outcome was the creation of Hawul and Kwaya Kusar LGAs, while Biu as a whole stayed in Borno State.
As time went on, moves got started to merge the activities of the Forum to those of the senior Biu Development Association, BDA. The BDA is now BEDA (Biu Emirate Development Association). The move never materialised and the activities of both slowed down. It took the efforts of patriots like Engineer Ibrahim Usman, Dan Masani Muhammad Ibrahim, Adamu Abdullahi, Amb. Saidu, Ibrahim M.Kwajaffah, Muhammad Buba, Mai Musti, Bukar Umar and a host of others to revive the Forum and keep it going.
So for all intents and purposes the Biu Forum was not a Biu Local Government outfit. It was initiated to protect and promote the interest of Biu and Shani Emirates. And indeed every Aburwa on the planet. How it became a Forum exclusively for Biu Local Government Area was maybe a later development to give the Forum a sharper focus. And maybe to ensure a seamless coexistence with the senior BEDA.This has been a short story of the now, 33-year old (1991 to –) initiative.
A.G.Abubakar agbarewa@gmail.com
THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW
Opinions
Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest.

Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest.
By: Dr. James Bwala
History should teach us lessons. And we have so many examples that are part of the history of some countries around us. Protests as being engineered and called for are never in the interest of the young Nigerian; rather, they are a way to further suppress and darken the future of young ones, and therefore, I see this as another evil rising on Nigeria, which I hope the youths will see as reasons not to be tempted to join those who do not mean well for them and for Nigeria. Those who want to cash in on the protest to their advantage are pushing their own evil interests to deny the young Nigerian his or her own hope for the future.
I followed many calls on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and listened to many voices calling on the Nigerian youths to join them on the days to demonstrate and show their displeasure to the government over hunger in the land. They claimed it was about a policy, and I did not really understand the truth about such claims. Some pointed to the issue of insecurity that people cannot go to their farms and blamed the present administration led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima, and on this too, they are not speculating on facts that are leading them to want to express anger through protest.
I could not understand why all the things they are pointing to have been on their doorsteps for over 10 years and they would not protest until now. Does it mean that their eyes are now open to the situation we all found ourselves in? I have lived in northeastern Nigeria, and I have seen situations created by insecurity where children, young men, and adults hold each other’s hands and cry out for help to have a drop of grain and for one cut of a handful of mold grain flour to go through their mouths and down their throats for the day, but they could not have the assurance of such a meal. No one came to the rescue; no one called for a protest, and the people built their resilience until the heavens brought succor.
READ ALSO:https://newsng.ng/the-plight-of-farida/
The situation in which certain individuals are coming to tell young Nigerians to protest or to demonstrate against the administration requires a deeper look into their motives. It may not be about hunger in the land afterwards, for we have endured many hungers and we did not protest, so why now? Politics is still in the play, and a few individuals—I mean, very few individuals—who are not happy with the Tinubu and Shettima administration are orchestrating the wind horses. Some young Nigerians may think otherwise, but believe me, there are many more evils behind the call for protest than what you are hearing on social media, and these are about destroying a whole lot of what you have hoped for.
I will suggest that no Nigerian youth should join or listen to calls from those who have sent their children abroad for you to continue to be their foot soldiers, and in the end, they achieve something and you achieve nothing. Take a look at the protests or demonstrations in the past. Not outside Nigeria, but within. Some of you have participated, and you are still on the street after that protest. Your peace and happiness have been taken. Those you fought for—have they come to salvage your situation? Unless you want to remain perpetually a fool on the street with very little to gain and no knowledge of what you are bargaining, then you may choose to go with the evil callers; otherwise, say ‘NO’ to protest as it is not actually in your interest.
This administration, which you are being instigated to demonstrate against, has won many battles in the last year. The latest in the Hope initiative are the achievements of the court ruling on local government autonomy. This government has achieved free imports for drugs and rice and brought peace through the establishment of the livestock ministry. These are a few achievements from the last six months. We have waited for eight years in hope through the Buhari administration, and no one has seen positive changes, but we waited. Herein, with the Tinubu and Shettima administrations, we are seeing the moves and the results. Can we not hold on to this renewed hope since we are seeing the changes coming?
Nigerian youths, let no one deceive us into doing their bid. They have places to go; we only have Nigeria, which is all we have. When they moved out, we remained here. They cannot come from Europe and America to ask us to set our houses on fire while they go back to their second homes and leave us in the shackles that we used our own hands to perpetuate their desires against us for their selfish and evil interests. No, we must not come to the level they want us to reach. We must rise with renewed hope and join this administration to build a Nigeria where peace and justice reign, just as we pledged to build in our re-engineering calls for a better tomorrow.
Dr. James BWALA, PhD, writes from Abuja.
Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest.
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