Between May 29, 2015 and May 29, 2022, over 55,430 Nigerians have been killed by terrorist groups and criminal gangs operating across the country, a report by the Counter-terrorism Department of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change has revealed.
The report also indicated that in 2021 alone, over 3.2 million Nigerians had been displaced from their homes, mostly from the North.
While some fled across the border to Niger, the majority reside with relatives, typically in urban and suburban areas that are deemed safer.
The report authored by a Senior Fellow of the Institute, Bulama Bukarti, was titled, ‘Democracy under threat: Why security risks to Nigeria’s 2023 elections must not be overlooked’, a copy of which exclusively was obtained by our correspondent.
The report was published as a guide to the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
According to Bukarti, who is also a legal practitioner, the situation has escalated in the past 18 months during which over 8,948 Nigerians were killed and 7,184 abducted.
As of July 2022, at least 2.45 million were registered as internally displaced.
“If this trend continues, millions of Nigerians will be displaced from their designated polling units on election day. Individuals are only allowed to cast their vote in polls where they originally registered. So, the high number of internally displaced people could make a big difference to the outcome of the 2023 election,” part of the report read.
Bukarti also noted that the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), came to power in 2015 on three campaign promises – tackling insecurity, fighting corruption and growing the economy.
“In his first few months in office, he took major steps to contain and thwart Boko Haram, which had become one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world. However, while security forces were dismantling and pushing Boko Haram back to the fringes of the Lake Chad region, two other serious threats were escalating.
“While the secessionist IPOB predates the Buhari administration, the group did not pick up arms until well after he became president. Similarly, criminal gangs or, as they are known locally, “bandits” have been operating for more than a decade, but their danger and reach have increased during the president’s tenure. Today, these acute security threats are turning Nigeria into a nation at war with itself, albeit without any formal declaration.
“Despite assurances by the government, Boko Haram remains a serious threat around the borders of the Lake Chad Basin. The group’s three splinter factions have expanded their reach over the past two years into new territories, including in North West and North Central Nigeria, and even parts of the south.
“However, the primary threat in the North West remains the bandits who, over the past seven years, have killed and kidnapped thousands of people while destroying hundreds of villages and causing the displacement of millions.
He further urged INEC to work with political parties and other stakeholders to expand and strengthen the credibility of its IDP voting system. (PUNCH)
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