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Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take decisive action against bandits terrorising the country, warning that if the government fails to do so, Nigerians are within their rights to seek assistance from the international community.
Obasanjo made the remarks on Friday, November 28, during his speech at the Plateau Unity Christmas and Praise Festival. He lamented that despite widespread killings across regions and religions, the Nigerian government appears unable to protect its citizens, describing the situation as “nonsensical.”
“We are part of the world community. If our government cannot do it, we have the right to call on the international community to do for us what our government cannot do for us. If we are being killed, it is the responsibility of the government to do something about it.
“We should ask the government to do what it has to do at all levels. We should ask our leaders to do what they have to do at all levels and in all walks of life,” he said.
Obasanjo added that with modern technology, no criminal should be able to hide or escape justice.
“In these days of technology, there should be nobody hiding anywhere after committing a crime that cannot be seen with the present-day satellite,” he said.
Reflecting on his time as Nigeria’s President, he noted that new tools such as drones now make it easier to locate and apprehend criminals compared to when he was in office. He questioned why the government negotiates with criminals instead of deploying available technology to neutralise threats.
“Before I left government, I knew we had the capacity to identify and locate anybody in Nigeria. What we didn’t have then was the capability to pick up such criminals without moving on land or by air. Now we have that capacity with drones—you can take them out. Why are we not doing that? Why are we negotiating? And after government has paid these criminals, government denies it!”
He appealed to authorities at all levels to act swiftly and decisively to end the killings.
“We are tired of being killed, and we want the killing of Nigerians—whether they are Christians, Muslims or pagans—to stop. Every Nigerian life matters. It should stop,” he stressed.
