It is very germain that we put issues in proper perspectives, and establish our position and definite direction. It is trite that Tinubu knew the challenges and burdens associated with the seat of power when he said, “I know the challenges associated with this job and I signed up for it, don’t pity me.” That statement alone is enough to show that he is fighting a hydra-headed monster with multiple heads. I have said in most of my submissions that Tinubu is the father of modern federalism in Nigeria, knowing full well that he cannot fight the battle alone if the Federal Government, state governments, and Local Governments are not buying into the commitment to function like a well-oiled machine.

A proper observation of his policy will reveal a determined move towards decentralization, running from financial autonomy for local governments to potential state policing to decentralize police academy, to massive job creation and the decentralization of army training centers. All these divided branches are expected to yield success in their respective divisions. But this is not the case at the moment, as most of the state governments are not in their elements on the issue. Most of them are still sitting on local government funds; huge sums are being allocated to them, but there is no tangible output that match those payments.

When I say Tinubu is fighting a monster with multiple heads, I mean there are multiple entities contributing to the insecurity of Nigeria. These include ISIS, which are extremist religious groups; bandits, which are entities mainly engaged in kidnapping for ransom as a business; politically motivated elements sponsored by politicians or those who have been used in the past; and the IPOB, which originated from the East. Of course, there are also private kidnapping businesses operating purely to fleece relatives.

A common criticism against the administration is the consolidation of political allies and specific ethnic groups into top security positions. Critics argue that despite this favoritism, insecurity remains rampant, suggesting a lack of seriousness or competence. However, a deeper look at the timeline reveals a critical flaw in this narrative. Many of the frontline personnel and strategic commanders currently managing these crises were not recruited or appointed under the current administration. They are people already in positions from previous systems, meaning the foundational architecture of the current crisis predates the current political distribution of power.

A growing body of evidence points to a much more insidious problem than mere administrative incompetence. The persistence of insecurity in specific regions strongly suggests the presence of political and financial sabotage. The reality is that certain actors stand to benefit financially or politically from prolonged instability, actively undermining strategic operations from within the broader system.

If top-down federal appointments cannot solve the crisis, the answer must lie in structural devolution. The most effective weapon against localized insecurity is the immediate establishment of state policing. A centralized police force managed from a distant federal capital cannot efficiently police the intricate terrains of diverse states. State police forces, answerable directly to local leadership, ensure that security personnel are deeply abreast of the geography, cultural nuances, and language of the communities they are sworn to protect.

The argument for localization becomes even more critical when looking at specialized security units, such as the Forest Guards. For these units to be effective, they cannot be populated by individuals completely decoupled from the communities they guard. Concerns have been raised regarding the recruitment of personnel such as Fulani recruits to protect predominantly Yoruba farmlands and forests in regions like Kwara South. This structural mismatch creates friction and inefficiencies because to secure a community, you must recruit from that community.

The individuals recruited into local Forest Guards must be indigenous to the local government areas they are deployed to protect for several unquestionable reasons. First, local recruits possess an intuitive mastery of the terrain, already knowing the hidden paths, forests, and hideouts of their own local government areas without needing a map. Second, they have a powerful, personal stake in the outcome; indigenous officers will not easily compromise or retreat because they are protecting their own parents, siblings, children, and ancestral lands from being killed or dislodged. Lastly, local populations are far more likely to share vital, timely intelligence about criminal movements with officers who are their neighbors and kinsmen than with outside forces.

The current reality on the ground proves that local populations are already taking matters into their own hands. Across various regions, local groups are actively combing bushes and forests to root out the enemies of their communities. They are doing the heavy lifting because they understand the terrain and have the ultimate will to fight. It is time for federal policy to align with this reality. By formalizing state policing and ensuring that forest guards and frontline responders are recruited directly from the troubled local government areas themselves, Nigeria can finally transition from reactive, failing strategies to a robust, locally-driven defense system capable of restoring true peace.

A recent UN report showed that arms from Libya with a higher Order of Battle find their way into Nigeria. To bring the past to the present a bit, when the US toppled the Gaddafi regime, the weapons used made their way into Nigeria, which is what these criminal elements are using now. The same goes for the Sahel nations who previously had agreements with the French military. Following France’s withdrawal from those agreements, there has been a surge in terrorist attacks all around Africa.

If not for the welfare initiatives currently being put in place by the Tinubu administration, many Nigerians would already be running away from military service, a career that used to be highly sought after. During the Jonathan administration, when insecurity peaked due to lack of weapons and poor welfare, there was a high rate of resignation. This trend continued into the Buhari regime for similar reasons. However, the current administration has gone so far as to provide motorcycles for the military, enabling them to access the most difficult terrains.

The security welfare Tinubu has put in place is incomparable to other governments. For example, he gave up all of his salary since assuming office to the military, initiated a review of military allowances to increase spending on the defense budget, established the forest guard, and set up different anti-bandit units. Because of these deliberate actions, this administration has recorded high success in security.

It is worthy to note that all these issues did not start in Tinubu’s administration. This is why I always say there is a need to declare a total war on open grazing of animals, a need for state policing, and a need to ensure that the community people recruited to man the security of their territories are properly utilized. If the state and local governments had adopted all the initiatives the president has put in place, we wouldn’t be here. Assuming the other levels of government were also investing heavily in security like the federal government, there would surely be a massive difference.

The other levels of government have to be on the same page with the federal government to fight this battle successfully; without this, the result won’t be different. If not for the initiatives Tinubu is putting in place, we would have had more dire situations. There is a vital need for all sectors of the country to unite and fight together.

There is an unspoken illusion among some in the federal tier of government, or those residing within the secure enclaves of Abuja, that the localized chaos in the distant corners of Nigeria do not affect them. It is a dangerous misconception. We have people all over this country in the deepest recesses of our villages and rural communities. When insecurity or systemic failure affects our people in the villages, it affects us all.

The equation is simple and absolute: when it is well locally, it will be well nationally. But when it is bad at the local level, it will inevitably be bad at the national level. Securing and developing Nigeria is not a selective venture; it requires every single stratum of government to actively work. President Tinubu is having sleepless nights over the state of the nation, but that restlessness cannot stop at the villa. State governors must have sleepless nights. Local government chairmen must have sleepless nights. Ministers and Directors-General of MDAs must equally have sleepless nights.

To turn the tide, leadership across the board must confront several critical frontiers head-on.

There is an urgent, non-negotiable need for governors most especially Northern governors to invest heavily in education. For too long, the region has battled foundational deficits that fuel vulnerability. Beyond physical infrastructure, these governors must aggressively sensitize their people to the value and necessity of modern education.

Hand in hand with this sensitization, there must be a legal and moral crackdown on parental neglect. It is time to criminalize the act of giving birth to children and failing to take care of them. A society cannot look away while children are brought into the world only to be abandoned to the streets without a future, creating a fertile breeding ground for tomorrow’s crises.

Furthermore, states like Kwara must take decisive steps to address internal identity crises. When communities face fractured identities or a lack of cohesive belonging, governance becomes fragmented, and social cohesion breaks down. State leadership must actively work to harmonize these internal dynamics to foster a unified front for regional development.

On the security front, we must put an end to the chaotic movement of livestock and herdsmen. There is an immediate need to declare an emergency on open grazing. We must stop the unchecked crossing of herders from one state to another, from one country to another, and from one local government to another.

To enforce this, our approach to forest security needs a complete and aggressive overhaul. The current Forest Guards need more than just a restructuring; they need a psychological and tactical rebranding. The government should officially change the name of the Forest Guard to something far more formidable and structured specifically, the Anti-Bandit Battalion. This shift in nomenclature and mandate, akin to a formal manifesto for territorial reclamation, will signal a move from passive observation to active, highly-trained combat against criminal elements invading our forests.

This is a battle that cannot be won through isolated efforts. Just as iron sharpens iron, leadership must sharpen leadership, and communities must strengthen communities.

There is an absolute need for unity. There is a need for coming together across ethnic, political, and regional lines. We must fight this battle together as a collective whole, because no tier of government, and no class of citizens, can survive as an island of peace in an ocean of insecurity. It is time for every leader, from the local council to the federal minister, to wake up and earn their sleepless nights.

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Bamidele Atoyebi is the Convener of BAT Ideological Group, National Coordinator of Accountability and Policy Monitoring and a publisher at Unfiltered and Mining Reporting and political social worker