JUST when we thought we could finally sleep with both eyes closed, when we heard the fairy tale that Boko Haram was technically defeated, the terrorists have returned with a vengeance that should make every Nigerian shake their head in disbelief. The audacity! The sheer bloody audacity of these animals.
They didn’t just return quietly. No, these degenerates decided to announce their comeback by sacking entire military formations, carting away weapons worth millions, and leaving our brave soldiers fleeing to their villages like civilians. Is this the same military that was supposedly winning the war against insurgency?
Five soldiers killed in Marte. Equipment destroyed. Commanding officers’ vehicles stolen. New motorbikes meant to secure our communities now in the hands of murderers. If this isn’t a national embarrassment, then I don’t know what is.
But trust our leaders to always find someone else to blame. The Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, Maj. Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, wants us to believe that the problem is coming from “greater Sahel region.” What a convenient excuse!
So our porous borders, which we’ve been complaining about for decades, are suddenly relevant now?
Let me get this straight – we had the insurgents on the run, declared them technically defeated, celebrated victory, and now they’re back stronger than before. Someone needs to explain to Nigerians how this magic happened. Were our intelligence agencies sleeping? Were they too busy planning the next political campaign to notice terrorist movements?
The most infuriating part is listening to Governor Zulum cry about federal attention shifting away from the northeast.
“We are losing ground,” Zulum finally admits. Ground? We’ve lost entire communities! These terrorists are now using weaponised drones – yes, drones! – to carry out attacks. How did we get here? How did a group that was supposedly defeated suddenly acquire military-grade drones?
The tragedy on the Maiduguri-Damboa Road where two education officials were killed by IED while going to write their teaching exams tells you everything about the state of our security.
These people were trying to improve themselves, contribute to nation-building, and boom – their lives snuffed out by cowards who hide in forests.
But wait, there’s more! While Boko Haram is terrorizing the northeast, bandits are having a field day in the northwest. Over 200 people kidnapped in just one constituency? Are you kidding me? In Zamfara alone, communities are paying millions in ransom or watching their loved ones get butchered.
Aminu Sani Jaji, a lawmaker representing Kaura Namoda and Birnin Magaji Federal Constituency of Zamfara State at the House of Representatives painted a picture so grim that even Nollywood scriptwriters would reject it as too unrealistic. Sixty people kidnapped in Banga, ten killed when ransom couldn’t be paid, twenty-five more taken from Gabake. This is not a movie – this is the reality of northern Nigeria in 2025.
And don’t get me started on the killer herdsmen wreaking havoc in the Middle Belt. Over 200 people killed in Benue, Plateau, and Kwara states. Our country has become a slaughterhouse, and we’re acting like it’s normal.
Some lazy analysts are already peddling the tired conspiracy that violence increases during political seasons. What nonsense! This is not about politics – this is about our collective failure to take security seriously. We keep throwing money at this problem without any sustainable solution.
President Bola Tinubu, with all due respect, your economic reforms will amount to nothing if Nigerians are being killed daily. You cannot build a prosperous nation on graves.
Economic transformation without security is like building a house on quicksand.
The truth that nobody wants to hear is this: we never defeated Boko Haram. We just pushed them into hiding. Our military celebrated prematurely, politicians took credit for non-existent victories, and now innocent Nigerians are paying the price with their blood.
What we need now is not more press conferences or blame games. We need:
First, honest assessment of our security architecture. Stop lying to us about victories that don’t exist. If you’re losing, tell us you’re losing so we can all work together to find solutions.
Second, secure our borders properly. These weapons flowing in from the Sahel didn’t fly here on their own. Our border security is so porous that a blind man can see through it.
Third, invest in intelligence gathering. How can terrorists acquire drones without our security agencies knowing? Someone isn’t doing their job, and that person needs to be fired.
Fourth, support our military properly. These soldiers fleeing to their villages aren’t cowards – they’re under-equipped heroes facing better-armed terrorists. Give them what they need to fight effectively.
Finally, let’s stop the ethnic and religious coloring of this issue. Terrorists don’t ask about your religion or ethnicity before killing you. This is a Nigerian problem that requires Nigerian solutions.
As I write this, somewhere in the northeast, a family is wondering if their loved one will return home alive. In the northwest, parents are teaching their children to hide when strangers approach. In the Middle Belt, farmers are afraid to visit their farms.
This is not the Nigeria we want. This is not the Nigeria we deserve. The government must act decisively now, or we’ll all be attending more funerals than weddings.
The time for excuses is over. The time for action is now. Because if we don’t stop these killers today, tomorrow might be too late for all of us.The blood-soaked soil of Nigeria is crying out for justice. Are we listening?
- Nda-Isaiah is a political analyst based in Abuja and can be reached on jonesdryx@gmail.com. His syndicated column appears on News Point Nigeria newspaper on Saturdays.