The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has said that events in recent weeks have clearly shown that the President Bola Tinubu administration was serious about tackling Nigeria’s security challenges headlong.
This, the group believes, contradicts allegations of nonchalance against the government by critics in the aftermath of the abduction of pupils and teachers from three schools recently in Oyo state.
In a statement by its Chairman Emeka Nwankpa and Secretary Dapo Okubanjo, the group argued that notwithstanding the unfortunate situation in the South West state, security personnel had been conducting successful operations in some key hotspots of insecurity in the country.
“The statement read in full: “We are aware of the ongoing abduction situation in Oyo State which has held the entire country spell-bound especially as the unidentified kidnappers killed two people during the coordinated operation in three schools in a rural community, and later murdered one of their victims in captivity.
“Incidentally, this act happened within a few days of a joint security operation by the US and Nigerian military which successfully took out the second-in-command of ISIS for global operations, Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, and other top members of the terrorist group in a ground and air assault on one of their locations in the Lake Chad region.
“While the implication of the success of the joint operation in eliminating al-Minuki may be lost on many Nigerians keen on playing politics with the security challenge, the US authorities are celebrating the killing of a man described by the Americans as ‘the most active and impactful terrorist in the world’.
“We also acknowledge that after further air strikes on ISIS strongholds in the region over two days, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) announced that 175 terrorists were neutralised.
“This is aside from scattered military operations in Zamfara, Taraba and Sokoto where a huge number of arrests of terrorists and their collaborators were made. All these clearly show a real seriousness in dealing with terrorism in the country.
“We are also aware that even as security agencies and the authorities are making efforts to rescue the abducted persons, the Nigerian Police announced the arrest of six suspects who were said to have provided logistics support as well as information on foot paths and routes through the Oyo National Park for the abductors who have now been identified as terrorists fleeing military operations in Northern Nigeria.
“The President has meanwhile used the opportunity of the coordinated school abduction to reaffirm his stance on state police and urged the National Assembly to expedite action on its legal framework while handing out a directive to heads of security agencies on the rescue of the abducted persons.
“So it makes no sense for some people to continue spreading a narrative of a federal government that is nonchalant to security issues especially as there are indications of a reduction in the scale of attacks with mass casualties as a result of improved counterterrorism efforts.
“For the avoidance of doubt, data from the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) shows that Nigeria’s deadliest insurgency years may have passed even though the country continues to face insecurity in evolving forms especially in ungoverned spaces and areas that are largely under-policed.
“This is as a result of counterterrorism operations that have reduced mass casualty attacks with kidnapping, and rural raids still pose a threat to security.”
The group urged Nigerians to be more security conscious while giving more support to security agencies to make the country more secure, safer, and stable
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