National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has asserted that Nigeria is more secure now than it was before President Bola Tinubu assumed office, even as the country grapples with persistent security threats.
Speaking at the APC National Summit held at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja, Ribadu said while parts of the Sahel region are crumbling under the weight of extremism and military takeovers, Nigeria is “standing strong and confronting evil.”
He attributed recent Boko Haram attacks in Borno State to the resurgence of jihadi activities in the Sahel, noting that the region’s instability has already led to democratic collapse in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, and has severely affected Chad, Cameroon, and Benin Republic.
Ribadu outlined the five major security challenges the Tinubu administration inherited:
- Boko Haram insurgency in the North East
- Banditry in the North West
- Secessionist agitations by IPOB/ESN in the South East
- Niger Delta unrest
- Communal and herder-farmer conflicts in the North Central
According to him, over 35,000 lives were lost to Boko Haram and 12,000 to banditry, with millions displaced. Yet, he said “teamwork among security agencies” has helped reduce the impact of threats such as sit-at-home orders in the South East and sabotage of oil facilities in the Niger Delta.
He reported the following achievements under the current administration:
- 13,543 Boko Haram fighters killed
- 11,000 weapons recovered and destroyed
- 124,408 insurgents and their family members surrendered
Operations, he added, continue in Tumbuktu Triangle, Tumbu Islands, and other terrorist strongholds, as the government remains committed to rooting out all forms of insurgency.
