One Ahmed Mohammed, an ex-member of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), has been reportedly arrested by the police high command in Kaduna State for being a supplier of military items to bandits in Zamfara State. The ex-soldier was apprehended while ferrying assorted military wears, including camouflage and other accoutrements that belong to security operatives from Kaduna, to bandits terrorising Zamfara people. He was reportedly transporting the items to Shinkafi Local Government in Zamfara State in company with his childhood friend, Mushiri Abubakar, whom he reportedly introduced to the illegal sale of military items to bandits. The suspect, who was attached to Air Force base Kaduna, was said to have spent just five years in the service before he was court-martialled for yet-to-be-disclosed offence. The duo had reported supplied military provisions to all the gangs in the state, including the one under the watch of a very notorious bandit called Bello Turji. Police investigation is yet ongoing and there has been no evidence that they supplied real weapons and munitions, but it is most probable that they did, or at least they may know those who do.

The relevant authorities are, therefore, invited to launch a painstaking inquiry into the activities of the two suspects not just to establish a prima facie evidence against them but also to find a lead to other bigger suppliers and enablers of terrorism in the land. Yes, it is yet unestablished that arms and munitions were part of their supplies to the bandits, but that does not dampen the graveness of their offence. It is axiomatic that when people see uniformed persons, they tend to respect and even fear them. Thus, giving military wear to criminals is a serious offence because the suspects have willfully aided the criminals to present false identities suggesting that they are official security personnel, thereby putting unsuspecting innocent citizens and even the genuine security personnel at risk of opportunistic attacks by felons.

It is becoming increasingly imperative to focus and launch attack on suppliers, financiers, informants, aiders, abettors and all those who constitute support systems to bandits and terrorists. On this score, all armed services are enjoined to keep a tab on their rank and file, including ex-servicemen, so that those who hobnob or ally with criminals can be swiftly fished out before they compromise state security on the altar of primordial considerations and/or pecuniary gain as in the instant case. The reported dexterity with which bandits and terrorists handle weapons and sometimes their precise knowledge of federal troops’ movements tend to suggest that they are getting help from insiders who are familiar with the terrain.

While the arrest of the ex-military man and his accomplice is gratifying, it should sensitise the government and its security agencies to the inadequacies of the current security infrastructure. It is not possible to have persisting banditry and terrorism without a system of sustenance for the negative acts. It ought to be clear that bandits and terrorists are able to function, survive and persist because of the availability of a conductive and supportive environment for them. And it is rather unfortunate that the government has been unable to discover and massively disrupt this support structure, leaving the criminals to be on top of their game for so long. The breakthrough in the current arrest should be built upon to further hunt down other aspects of the supportive structure making for persisting banditry and terrorism in the country.

It bears stressing that a deliberate and frontal attack on all enablers of criminals will whittle down their support system and it will be a matter of time for the wind to be taken out of their sails. Another basic remedial measure is to reduce the incentive for crime with the provision of opportunities for productive engagement for the millions of youth roaming about aimlessly in the country. It is hoped that through more purposive and purposeful efforts by the government, Nigerians will start to see a decline in banditry and terrorism and be ushered into a new era of peace and security. Meanwhile, Ahmed Mohammed and his friend and partner in crime should be brought to book and severely sanctioned within the ambit of the law to serve as a deterrent to their ilk and those who may wish to tread the same perfidious path as they did. This is imperative so that every citizen would know that it is an egregious crime to collaborate in any manner or form with enemies of the state.

Update news