In 1960, when Nigeria got her independence, all the traits of an INDEPENDENT STATE were incorporated. Aside from power being held by Nigerians, she was also free from external aggression, which means there was defense put in place to counter any form of aggression against the State.
But there was a problem. She was too focused on defending herself against others, forgetting that her real enemies lived within her.
She was so concerned with watching the borders to the detriment of her brothers, whose body languages suggested danger. So, I’d still ask as I always do–in all of this, is Nigeria Secured or unsecured?
The Military felt the early leaders were feeble. So, they took over power to protect this same territory that means so much to them. So, while they were warding off evil from external forces, evil was being brewed from within.
Recall that it was in this same military regime that their priority was to ensure the security of the masses that coups were planned and hatched against each other.
It was in the Military era that letter bombs were sent from one place to another, as well as an infringement on human rights. So, tell me, has Nigeria been secured or unsecured?
It got to a point where we felt there should be a change in the form of governance, and DEMOCRACY was introduced.
It was supposed to be the time of rest from the previous unrest; a time where people no longer need to sleep in their houses with fear. But we experienced then and now it is the reverse. It is now that there are sophisticated means of security that the level of insecurity in the country is on the rise.
We have one of the deadly groups in the world kidnapping and killing innocent souls. Farmers and herders clash, daily leading to an untoward death toll. What about the recent political killings where souls of devout and pious Nigerians were lost….
So, is Nigeria Secured or unsecured?
Remember the Chibok girls, remember the #endsars protest and all the lives that were lost, endeavour to remember the recent killings of farmers by herdsmen in Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa, just to mention a few, and please, do not forget the killings in Anambra where Dr Chike Akunyili was murdered in cold blood.
When you remember all these and many more, please, tell me if Nigeria is secured or unsecured.
Over to you, Winifred and Joxzy…
Winifred Òdúnóku
Not too long ago, we were slapped by the sad news about how some invaders – otherwise known by the moniker: unknown gunmen – breached the security at the National Defense Academy in Kaduna and got away with the act.
This invasion was not only considered embarrassing for a nation whose military G.O.A.Ts have had a thing or two to do with the academy in the past or currently living in it, but was also a cause for alarm for the masses who found it rather unsettling.
Comments in the likes of “If dem fit enter defense academy, “wetin kon remain again” rented the air as citizens showed their displeasure at the level of insecurities and insurgencies in the country.
And the president is sitting comfortably right in the middle of all these hocus-pocus without raising a finger. This is the reason why citizens have lost absolute faith and trust in this present government.
The kidnappings and killings have started even before Nigeria supposedly got her Independence from the colonial masters.
There’s been cases of military personnel’s being executed for not joining others to orchestrate one evil or the other against a particular big man.
There’s been several more cases where vocalists and activists were imprisoned for holding a mic and speaking so that people at the back can hear well, the evils that the government is perpetrating.
How about the other bad news of a dozen men raping a woman and killing her afterwards? What was her offence? She had finished studying and was looking for a job but unfortunately fell into the wrong hands.
Shall we talk about how unknown gunmen appear from nowhere on the highway to rob and kill innocent travelers indiscriminately? Maybe that’s even too far-fetched.
Think about this: Why shouldn’t there be a functional rescue team much like 911 of America that can quickly respond in times of unforeseen and perhaps inevitable incidents that directly affect the citizens.
If the president were to be pronounced missing today, would they allow it to pass like the kidnap of the Chibok girls and the Lekki Massacre? I guess not. Secured or unsecured, Nigeria still has a long way to go.
®️ Winifred Òdúnóku
My mind goes back to October 20th, the Lekki Massacre. The vicious criminal attack carried on innocent citizens by the supposed agencies who swore by law to fight for peace, to protect the lives and properties of the same citizens.
Imagine a parent, birthing and raising a child and when he becomes an adult, calls that child to a closet just to slain that child, how ridiculous.
Oh, Nigeria! You are the mother that murders the one you mother.
This begs for the Question: Are we secured or Unsecured? Is Nigeria a Haven or Hellven? Often, we would hear and read stories of attacks here and there. Unknown gunmen, Boko haram, Bandits, Whatnots?
If you ask me, Nigeria has to be the most ironic country in the universe. A country where it is boldly inscribed on the coat of arms “Peace and Progress” yet has neither.
The height of incompetence is the shifting of the blame by the government agencies against the pro-agitator, labeling them names that they are not, hiding behind a veil to carry out their mess.
You call it political or tribal or religious. The truth though remains, Nigeria is a death trap. Over here, the average man lives without the assurance of life the next day. Not because he is sick but could be an attack, a stray bullet, a blast, a crisis.
For how long shall we continue in this nemesis we have left ourselves in? For how long shall we continue the blame games?
Living in a country where the ‘freedom of speech” is only for the dumb, is awestruck. You may want to wonder why is it only for the dumb? The answer is right there staring at you. Your freedom of speech is either to keep shut or speak a lie; else, you have your life whisked away.
I ask again: Is Nigeria secure or unsecure?
®️ JOXZY OTOR
