On a daily basis, Nigeria experiences such crimes as banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, cultism, among others. Recently, the Federal Correctional Centre in Owerri, Imo State capital, was attacked by unidentified gun men, releasing about 1,800 prison inmates. Political leaders negotiating with terrorists are not helping matters either.

And lately, a minister of the Federal Republic with access to the database of mobile network subscribers of over 200 million Nigerians has been placed on the United States’ terror watch list, due to his involvement with some people linked with Al Qaeda.

Against the foregoing backdrop, one wonders if the appointment of a new Inspector General of Police (IGP) will make any difference.

Over the past few years, Nigeria has witnessed different service chiefs as heads of their respective organisations. And these appointments are constitutional as every newly-elected President has the right to name a new IGP and service chiefs he believes could drive his security objectives.

The insecurity in Nigeria is incessant. And we've had capable inspectors-general of police that have done all they could to curb insecurity, but the magnitude of the problem is beyond any IGP, both then and now. We cannot but imagine the recent break-in by heavily armed gun-men into the Owerri Correctional facility where over a thousand prisoners escaped under the watch of a newly-appointed Acting Inspector General of Police, a serving State Commissioner of Police (CP) down to the divisional levels headed by Divisional Police Officers (DPOs). Yet, such heinous crime happened in the locality of Imo State and nothing was done to combat such crimes.

These crimes and other types, like banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, cultism, and the rest of them happen daily in our society. The new Inspector-General of Police can set up anti-crime committees to help him in those critical unsecured regions in the country. The religious leaders too can proffer solution to the insecurity in their various spaces by sensitising their congregations on measures to take to curb insecurity. This is achievable, following the lessons of the popular saying, “heaven helps those who help themselves.”

We can also blame most of the leaders too for insecurity by negotiating with terrorists. You can’t be negotiating with terrorists in a nation as large as Nigeria, because you'd only be giving them more rooms to carry out their evil plans out and they will keep displacing the noble people of the country, most especially in the northern part of the country. Terrorists are meant to be put in their place.

Now the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, has been placed on US Terror Watch List, because of his alleged involvement with some people linked with Al Qaeda, a “world terrorist organisation.” These are things we talk about on a daily basis; someone that has probably the database of mobile network subscribers of over 200 million Nigerians is being linked to terrorism.

That is a very huge accusation and his apologists are the rulers of our dear nation. Now, a serious danger looms in the country as we are exposed to any form of attack from anywhere as a result of this. The least that can be done is for the said minister to come out publicly and defend himself, to re-assure Nigerians not to panic, that the situation would not lead to more insecurity.

Economically, we cannot but over-emphasise what insecurity has caused Nigeria and Nigerians, both at home and abroad, and what sectors emphatically affected. Inflation is on the rise like some quantity of gari poured in a bowl with a little water, because insecurity is one of the problems that drastically affected the Nigerian economy as a whole.

The new Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, must fasten his seat-belt and work effortlessly and tirelessly, because there is so much on his plate. And they gave him a welcome ovation with the recent attacks in Imo State.

What is now the way forward? It is to totally curtail the incessant killings and destruction of lives and property by arsonists, and for the new IGP to imbibe new strategies to destroy insecurity in Nigeria. At least, he’s not a new-comer in Nigeria, he’s seen it all. So he should know better, even before taking on the mantle of the IGP.

•Mike-Nifty, curator and public affairs analyst, can be reached on nifty.mics@yahoo.com

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