Amnesty International calls on President Bola Tinubu to prioritize protecting lives and end the escalating insecurity that is making majority of the people increasingly feeling unsafe.
This week, at least 54 people have been killed in separate attacks in Benue, Borno, Kwara and Zamfara state. More people have been abducted or displaced. Nigerian government is increasingly failing to protect lives, as gunmen escalate attacks with impunity.
Gunmen have been slaughtering, sacking and razing farming communities in Benue and Plateau. In parts of Sokoto, Zamfara and Katsina bandits are applying brutal rules and imposing levies collected at gunpoint.
The latest attacks on rural communities show that President Bola Tinubu and his government have no effective plan for ending years of atrocities by armed groups, while gunmen are wantonly having a free reign of bloodshed across many parts of Nigeria. Whatever security measure being implemented by the government are not working.
Given the rising level of insecurity in Nigeria today, it is obvious that protecting lives and property is low on the list of government priorities. People should not be left to live in fear of the next attack or abductions. After every attack, more attacks follow — again and again. People have been left at the mercy of gunmen.
The Nigerian authorities’ consistent failure to protect people is completely unacceptable and must end.
