The mass kidnapping of students in Nigeria reveals Tinubu’s security concerns policy

Families in the village of Babiri have long demanded security forces to protect their children at the school in northern Nigeria, where gunmen kidnapped more than 300 students last week in one of the country’s worst mass kidnappings. But the residents say that no one responded.

Dauda Gwanja, the father of one of the kidnapped students, explained that the police, army and civil defense forces did not respond to their demands, so the villagers were forced to rely on unarmed volunteers to guard the school, but they fled when dozens of armed men on motorcycles stormed the place.

The attack on St. Mary’s Catholic School revealed the fragility of President Bola Tinubu’s efforts in the field of security, especially after US President Donald Trump threatened to take military measures due to what he described as mistreatment of Christians.

Two and a half years after he assumed power, and despite rating agencies praising the economic reforms, the almost daily attacks are still out of control, despite his promises to recruit more soldiers and police and improve their salaries and equipment.

Armed gangs frequently kidnap children for ransom in remote areas such as Babiri, which is only 6 kilometers from the nearest small police station and 4 hours from the nearest town.

In the northeast of the country, despite the recent decline in attacks by jihadist groups on civilians, militants are using drones and heavy weapons to attack army bases.

The attack in Niger State, where 12 teachers were also kidnapped, is considered one of the worst mass kidnappings recorded in Nigeria, surpassing the Chibok incident in 2014 when the Boko Haram group kidnapped 276 female students.

Tinubu canceled foreign trips and ordered the redeployment of security forces to pursue the kidnappers. He also directed the police to withdraw tens of thousands of its members assigned to protect VIPs and transfer them to public protection duties.

The president announced plans to recruit 30,000 additional police officers. But the closure of about 50 schools in the north for fear of new attacks reflects the government’s limited ability to quickly stop the wave of kidnappings.

Research centers such as Agora Policy indicate that more than a quarter of the police force – about 100,000 members – are dedicated to protecting politicians and dignitaries, which weakens the agency’s ability to protect citizens. Poor salaries and constant exhaustion among soldiers and police also add to the crisis.

In Kebbi State, another attack raised questions about the withdrawal of soldiers an hour before the kidnapping of 25 female students from a boarding school, despite intelligence information about a possible attack.

An army general was also killed by the ISIS West Africa Province group after his location was revealed during a phone call to his base.

These repeated incidents, according to security analysts, reveal serious intelligence failures and confirm that Nigerian forces face a more flexible adversary better able to exploit the country’s complex terrain.