Former Kano governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso says the Tinubu administration simply doesn’t have the stomach to take on the country’s rising tide of kidnappings and banditry.
Speaking in Kano on Tuesday while launching 2,000 new recruits for the Kano State Neighbourhood Security Network, Kwankwaso said ordinary Nigerians are being picked off daily while the gunmen walk free.
“The government owes Nigerians an apology for its lukewarm attitude to insecurity,” he told the crowd.
He praised the military—recalling how Nigerian troops had held their own in foreign trouble spots such as Darfur and Liberia—but argued that Abuja is starving them of the backing they need.
“When I ran the Ministry of Defence, I saw first-hand how good our soldiers are. They’re courageous. What they’re missing is the political push from the top to let them finish the job,” he said.
Kwankwaso reminded listeners that Nigerian units once came home from UN missions with top commendations, and urged President Tinubu to give the services whatever they require “to flip the script.”
Should he win the presidency in 2027, he added, “we’ll recruit well over a million new military personnel.”
