(Photo by CEE-HOPE NIGERIA via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED)
Nigeria has been making waves globally due to its contagious culture, captivating music that has dominated worldwide charts, and its status as one of the most populous countries in Africa. With over 242 million people, it is predicted to be the third most populous country in the world by 2050.
Yet, beneath those cultural forces and achievements lies a country where millions of people live in constant fear. Frequent cases of kidnapping have now become the new order of the day in Nigeria. Abductions, attacks, and constant killings have begun to raise concerns about whether the country suffers from insecurity and terrorism. The most absurd thing is that the victims of these senseless attacks are farmers, teachers, workers, and even students.
Just recently, on May 15, 2026, a group of gunmen stormed three schools in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, abducting 39 students, 3 toddlers, and 7 teachers. On May 29, 2026, one of the abducted individuals, Michael Oyedokun, a 57-year-old Maths teacher, was beheaded, with the footage uploaded to the internet. This devastating occurrence has sparked many concerns about the motive behind this senseless act.
How Multinational Companies Have Contributed to the Insecurity in Nigeria
Since independence in 1960, Nigeria has experienced a lot of turbulence. Mainly due to a political shift from democracy to military rule, civil war, economic boom from oil, and ongoing struggles with security and corruption.
The majority of locals in the Niger Delta Region depended mainly on farming and fishing for their income. However, since the discovery of oil in that region, many multinational companies such as Shell, Exxon, and TotalEnergies have continued drilling, leading to pollution. Large oil spills and constant pollution have prevented farmers from growing their crops and killed many fish in the area, leaving farmers and fishermen stranded.
(Photo by Luka Tomac/Friends of the Earth International via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 2.0 DEED)
Despite constant warnings and lawsuits, these multi-billion-dollar corporations have avoided being held accountable for their actions. In response to the negligence of the government and these multinational companies, the locals formed the Niger Delta Militants, which was responsible for the kidnapping of many people in that region.
Kidnapping and Displacement in Nigeria
In August of 2025, Sahara Reporters released a press report claiming that Nigerians have paid 2.57B Naira, approximately $1.88 USD, as ransom to kidnappers yearly. The estimated number of kidnapped victims is over 4,772. The poor economic condition, coupled with large ransom demands, makes it evident why more and more people are going into banditry and kidnapping.
Kidnapping has spread to other states, and many criminals see it as a lucrative way to make money. In recent times, kidnappings and acts of terrorism have been carried out by bandits across Nigeria. To make things worse, some of these bandits have become bolder by appearing on TikTok. They flaunt ransom money and mock the government by showcasing their actions for people to see.
A recent report issued in May 2026 by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom announced that attacks linked to militants and other armed groups in the Middle Belt have driven at least 1.3 million people from their land into displacement.
One group has been known to be notorious for kidnapping and other violent activities, specifically Boko Haram and its splinter faction, Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP).
The Birth of Boko Haram and ISWAP
Boko Haram is a religious extremist group that was created in 2002 by a radical Salafi cleric called Mohammed Yusuf in Maiduguri, the capital city of Borno. The objective of this radical group is to eliminate Western culture because, in their view, the Western way of life is a sin.
The first-ever recorded attack was in Bauchi State on July 26th, 2009. This conflict lasted four days and spread to other states, including Maiduguri, Borno, Yobe, and Kano. Approximately 1000 people were killed, including the leader of the radical Islamic group, Mohammed Yusuf.
Another memorable incident conducted by Boko Haram was the abduction of 276 school girls from Chibok, Borno State, in April 2014. The motive was to create fear, eventually stopping young ladies from attending school. Since 2014, Boko Haram has been successful in abducting over 1,680 school children.
(Photo by CEE-HOPE NIGERIA via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED)
The government is not doing enough to dismantle these radical groups. The government claimed to have spent trillions of naira on the deradicalisation programme, claimed to have killed thousands of terrorists, and made repeated claims of progress, yet they have not been able to put an end to these radical groups; they have gotten stronger and more ruthless. There are two main reasons why the government has failed to stop the insurgencies, which are simple: corruption and poor decision-making.
How Corruption Has Led to Insecurity In Nigeria
On the surface, the government seems to have taken efforts to fight this radical group, but behind closed doors, the government is benefiting from the insurgencies in Nigeria.
Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, the Executive Director of CISLAC and head of TI-Nigeria, publicly signed a statement alleging that political actors, security chiefs, and government officials are intentionally profiting from the insecurity industry. Musa went further to expose that millions of dollars donated for the defence and fight against Boko Haram and ISWAP have been diverted through inflated contracts, illegal arms deals, and a poor welfare structure that abandons soldiers and police officers defenceless.
Furthermore, in 2015, Sambo Dasuki, the former Security Adviser under Goodluck Jonathan’s regime, was accused of stealing an estimated $27 million during his tenure. It was alleged that he invested the stolen funds in buying luxurious estates in the United States. This is just one story; there is a series of cases in which ex-military chiefs, high-ranking officers, and government officials have been alleged to have stolen billions of naira intended to lead the fight against Boko Haram.
As a result of government officials stealing public funds, this led to the underfunding of security agencies like the army, the police, and many more. The police and soldiers are underpaid, and this has led them to seek alternatives to survive the already harsh economy.
Poor Government Decision and Subsidy Removal
Another way in which the government has failed to stop the insurgency of Boko Haram and ISWAP in Nigeria is due to poor government policy.
The Nigerian economy has faced significant challenges due to policy frameworks and decision-making processes that often prioritize institutional interests over broader public benefit, particularly in the areas of job creation and economic opportunity.
The recent removal of a gasoline subsidy by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has driven more Nigerians into poverty due to the high prices of fuel. With the price of gasoline currently selling at 1,150 to 1,250 Naira per litre, many Nigerians can not afford to fuel their vehicles or power their generator, especially with the present minimum wage being 77,000 Naira.
(Photo by Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street via Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED)
This failed policy has only been able to make many Nigerians hopeless, pushing them into seeking means to survive the already harsh economy.
Reintegration of captured Boko Haram and ISWAP Members into the Army
In 2016, the Nigerian government launched a programme called “Operation Safe Corridor”, a system that was created to reform and reintegrate ex-insurgents into society. It has been alleged that some of these ex-radicalists have been integrated into the army and have led many to believe that the army is already compromised. A retired Senior Army General has alleged that internal sabotage, political interference, and high-level compromises have deliberately destroyed efforts toward dismantling these terrorist groups.
There are cases in which members of the armed forces have advised against the reintegration of ex-Boko Haram and ISWAP members into the security services, as a result of leaked vital information and strategy by the ex-terrorist members.
Although the government has openly denied any claims of reintegrating former extremists into the security services, it maintains that its programs are designed solely to rehabilitate Boko Haram and ISWAP members, aiming to reintegrate them into society as productive citizens. Mind you, these people who are being reinstated into society are responsible for carrying out heinous crimes.
The Government Lacks Accountability
As a Nigerian myself, one of the hardest things to ignore is how the politicians’ negligence, ambition, and poor decisions have put the country in a very devastating condition. The lack of transparency has allowed some government officials to steal large amounts of money with no real consequence because they can bribe their way around it. The reason some of the corrupt politicians love the system is that they largely benefit from the corrupt system, they enjoy keeping people in poverty, and use desperate individuals as political thugs.
To reduce political tension, terrorism, and corruption, Nigeria must be able to hold its leaders accountable. There NGO’s and non-profit organisations that have been aggressively pushing for accountability in the country.
An example is SERAP: The Social Economic and Accountability Project. SERAP has been filing lawsuits against governors, ministers, and even members of the House of Assembly over security spending Opacity. Another agency that has been seriously interrogating budget figures is BudgiT. Since BudgiT’s inception in 2011, the organisation has been relentlessly utilising data-driven technology to analyse figures and fiscal governance. Lastly, the Clean Foundation Connected Development CODE is also a prominent non-governmental agency that has been driving the movement, directly taking action to promote public safety, security, and accessible justice.
These organisations have been leading the fight against corruption, mismanagement of public funds, and other illegal government activities. However, the government has been using legal tools to suppress their efforts to bring the government and its actors to book. For Nigeria to succeed, Nigerians need to support these organisations in their fight to hold the government accountable.
Edited by Isaac Code
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