Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has urged the Federal Government to halt all forms of negotiation and appeasement with terrorists, insisting that Nigeria must adopt tougher measures and seek international assistance to confront the nation’s worsening insecurity.
Obasanjo made the remarks on Friday at the Plateau State Unity Christmas Carol and Praise Festival in Jos, where he expressed deep frustration over the rising wave of killings, abductions and violent attacks across the North.
His comments come amid a surge in terror-related incidents, including the abduction of 315 students and 13 teachers from St Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Niger State on November 21. The attack followed the kidnapping of 26 schoolgirls from Government Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State just days earlier.
In the latest assault, bandits invaded Palaita community in Erena Ward, Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State, abducting 24 people—among them pregnant women—while others were kidnapped in Kano and Kwara States in coordinated overnight attacks. The string of violence unfolded barely 24 hours after 38 worshippers abducted from Christ Apostolic Church, Eruku, in Kwara State were released following government-mediated negotiations.
Speaking at the event, Obasanjo condemned the repeated reliance on negotiations, describing it as a sign of weakness that emboldens criminal groups.
“No matter what religion you belong to or where you come from, we Nigerians are being killed, and our government seems incapable of protecting us,” he said. “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.”
Obasanjo argued that Nigeria now possesses the technological capacity—especially through drone operations—to track and neutralise terrorists without needing ground movement. He questioned why such tools were not being fully deployed.
“Before I left government, we could identify and locate criminals anywhere in Nigeria. What we lacked then was the ability to apprehend them without physical movement,” he said. “Now we have drones. You can take them out. Why are we not doing that? Why are we apologising? Why are we negotiating?”
The former president’s remarks add to growing public pressure on the Federal Government to adopt a more decisive approach as communities across the country continue to grapple with escalating insecurity.
