President Bola Tinubu is facing mounting criticism over Nigeria’s worsening insecurity following the brutal killing of a senior military officer and the abduction of 25 female students in separate incidents.
Brigadier General Uba of the Nigerian Army was confirmed killed by Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists after going missing for several hours in a forest area. Military sources described the murder as “gruesome,” with the general reportedly executed by the terrorist group.
In a related development on Monday, gunmen stormed Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School, Maga, in Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State, abducting approximately 25 students. The school principal, Hassan Yakubu Makuku, was shot and killed during the attack.
The incidents have triggered sharp reactions from opposition figures and civil society.
Human rights activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore accused the Tinubu administration of indifference and leadership failure.
In a Facebook post, Sowore wrote:
“Twenty-five schoolgirls have been abducted by terrorists in Kebbi, yet Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s press statement of the day is a casual greeting to a ‘seasoned banker.’
A Brigadier General in the Nigerian Army has just been executed by Boko Haram/ISWAP, and still the President has said nothing. No reassurance. No outrage. No leadership.”
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also condemned the Kebbi abduction in strong terms, describing it as evidence of the government’s failure to protect citizens.
In a statement signed by National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong, the PDP said:
“This tragic incident further highlights the alarming rise in insecurity that has become the lived reality of the majority of Nigerians under the Tinubu-led APC administration, which has consistently preferred the politicisation of governance over the protection of citizens.”
The party added:
“When a government fails in its primary duty of safeguarding lives and property, it must accept responsibility and deal decisively with the issues, rather than act aloof or attempt to deflect from the core issues, as this administration has repeatedly done.”
