Over the week, many who were very optimistic about the recent Nigeria-US security partnership were dismayed, especially with the updated travel advisory issued by the United States of America.

On Wednesday, Washington updated its travel advisory from Level 3 category, which implies ‘Reconsider Travel’ to Level 4 category, ‘Do Not Travel’, while adding 23 states to its list of no-go-areas in the country.

The US also went ahead to close its embassy in Abuja, ordering its staff members to leave. While Washington did not disclose the rationale for its action beyond insecurity, some observers are alleging that President Bola Tinubu’s visit to Lagos may have been as a result of certain intelligence.

Of course, given the escalating insecurity and bare-faced killings in parts of the country, particularly, the renewed killings in Plateau and Benue, the recent invasion of military formations in Borno State and the killing of an army general and 17 soldiers by suspected members of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) and bandits displacing 21 villages in Sokoto State, query the much-talked about partnerships and gains in the fight against insecurity, as more Nigerians die every day.

According to Hassan Kontagora, a corporate trainer and an education consultant, the US knows Nigeria and its security challenge too well and have seen that the country is not ready for the assistance it is asking for.

“We were happy with the US airstrikes in Sokoto. Sadly, the strikes are not coming again, and terrorists have doubled their terror in the states. This week alone, 21 villages have been sacked by bandits. Who knows what they will do next? We have descended to low in this mess,” Kontagora lamented.

In his view, Kontagora insisted that the US is seeing something Nigerians are not seeing, especially its security partnership with Nigeria, which may have been scuttled, hence the issuing of the many travel advisories.

“I am sure the US played its part; maybe Nigeria did not fulfil its own part of the deal, hence the pulling out. Nobody, even our government, will not tell you what happened, but the reality is that it did not work out,” he noted.

Sad over the killing of his colleagues, particularly an army general and 17 soldiers in Borno State recently, Bem Hembafan, a retired security personnel, who runs private security for estates in Abuja and Kaduna, regretted that the terrorists invaded and attacked military formations successfully, which are supposed to be a defence hotbed in the troubled area.

“I see sabotage, because the attacks were well-coordinated. We can’t keep losing our men to terrorists. Something has to happen from within to ensure that everyone is part of the fight. I guess the US military saw this and left. I don’t know, but I fear this was what happened,” he said.

Musa Adoga, a Jalingo-based medical professional, is sad that the US is issuing strict travel advisories, which not only negatively impact the movement of its citizens to Nigeria and within the country, but also Nigerians, especially professionals travelling to the US for serious work.

“The advisories have a negative impact on us as a people. The bad image it creates out there for us, the difficulty of traveling to the US from here now the embassy is closed. Other countries will likely follow the US example,” Adoga said.

“Let our government be a bit sincere with the fight against insecurity; there are many toes the president does not want to step on. He should, that is what he swore an oath to do on his inauguration”.

For Adoga, the US has abandoned Nigeria to its fate because of non-compliance in the security partnership agreement or disclosure of necessary information, or shielding some of the sponsors of terrorism.

Adoga decried that despite the assurances of Daniel Bwala, one of the many special advisers of President Tinubu, that the president will likely go the extra mile in naming the financiers of terrorism in the country, nothing has happened.

“We have been waiting since then, the US too hoped that would happen, but it didn’t and may not because those are untouchables. How can it be said that a few non-state actors are holding over 200 million people hostage in a sovereign country.

“I blame these on the insincerity of our authorities, sabotage and politicizing the insecurity fight. The US military cannot succeed in this kind of environment, where the government pays ransom to bandits and denies it, where terrorists hold on to some territories unchallenged,” he said.

But Aondona Ukum, a security expert, noted that the Nigeria-US security partnership failed because Nigeria was inpatient with the US, it kept signing more agreements with other countries and did not meet its own part of the US deal.

“The US has the capacity to handle our insecurity. It is a pride and image thing. Why will you engage the US, and shortly you run to Turkey, France and recently the United Kingdom.

“What the US did is the right thing to pull out, because Nigeria is confused. If you stand with the US, just be with them and give them all the support they need to help you. But we failed,” he decried.

Toeing the same vein, Hembafan decried that there could be many military assistance and agreements, but that Nigeria did not honour the US by signing other agreements when the US had already started striking targets here.

“You know that the US is a global military powerhouse. Just give them that respect, massage their ego, and you will get the needed result.

“I cannot say the partnership has failed, but even if it has, it can be revived and run on strict compliance because many innocent Nigerians are dying every day,” he noted.

However, many concerned citizens are of the opinion that Nigeria needs the US to handle the security challenge and should do everything to make the partnership work.

“It is not about too many security agreements, but what works. The government should go for what works, give necessary support and be ready to step on toes to save lives,” an anonymous observer concluded. (BusinessDay)