Presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Occasion (SDP) within the 2023 basic election, Prince Adewole Adebayo has attributed the present wave of insecurity in Nigeria to what he known as “absent-mindedness of Tinubu authorities”, which he stated, had grow to be rudderless.
On this interview with Ihechukwu Sunday, he takes a panoramic views of the present safety state of affairs in Nigeria, menace of invasion of the killing of Christians continues by the US president, Donald Trump, the presidential order to cordon off forests, notably in states the place bandits are working riots, the order to with police particulars from the VIPs and the function of the opposition within the prevailing safety menace, amongst others. Excerpts!
How would you describe the state of Nigeria as at this second?
Effectively, it’s nonetheless orderless from the viewpoint of governance, and first duties of the totally different tiers of presidency nonetheless lie unattended to, and the dire state of affairs that our folks discover themselves, or all of us discover ourselves stays unchanged. There are indications that the federal government has misplaced its map, and it’s simply waking up day-after-day reacting to any new incident, or the umbrage, whether or not native or worldwide. There is no such thing as a rational observer who would say, ah, that is the trajectory of the place the Tinubu presidency was headed to.
What is going on in November 2025 was what they deliberate in November 2024. President Tinubu has misplaced management of his personal authorities, which he hasn’t had time to place collectively to start out with.
And nevertheless a lot you converse for the federal government; you can not say that the place they’re now in 2025 was the place they deliberate to be once they had been planning a yr in the past or two years in the past. They positively are within the wilderness, and if the captain of the ship can’t discover his method to the bridge, and he’s not in a position to find the place the ship is located, he can’t decide the path the ship goes, he has no management over the pace of the sail, the passengers on that ship are entitled to a brand new captain, or they provide up on that ship, and you can not hand over on Nigeria. So, it’s simpler to say that we’ve got a nasty authorities in nation than to say we’ve got a nasty nation, as a result of I do know that this nation, if nicely managed, is second to none.
If you say that this authorities has failed Nigerians, are you not making governance so simplistic; is it that easy? Are you saying that the federal government is deliberately wanting away from the folks?
The primary enemy of the federal government is the federal government. The primary enemy of the folks is the federal government. You can’t commit a criminal offense and final one week, one month, in the event you don’t have authorities folks cooperating with you.
I can’t go now to the financial institution supervisor in my financial institution and say to them that I wish to withdraw N6 million. They won’t reply me. They’ll say rip-off, EFCC, cash laundry, no matter.
However persons are paying tens of millions of naira in ransom. The individuals who acquire the ransom usually are not apprehensive about the place they’re carrying the cash to. If you wish to strive it out, simply hold gathering your wage and taking it to money. When it’s as much as N10 million, attempt to take it to the financial institution and the financial institution will let you know every kind of tales. What I’m letting you realize is that President Tinubu, in my very own humble view, has misplaced management of his authorities and is flailing round.
He must put his ass collectively, arrange his authorities, and ensure that he understands that police cowl this nation successfully as a result of each native authorities in Nigeria has a police division. There’s a DPO. In some massive or massively populated native governments, you’ve got multiple division of police there.
And are you telling me that in Eruku, in Isapa, and all these locations, there’s no division there? Are you saying that if there’s a youth corps member in Eruku criticizing the APC or criticizing the federal government, they won’t go and arrest the individual?
It is a authorities that might seize anyone in Nairobi, Kenya, and convey right here for trial and sentence the individual. However they can not seize people who find themselves going round. How do you go and carry lots of of individuals? Have you ever been a nursery college trainer earlier than? To get 35 youngsters to cooperate with inside the category, is it simple? How are you going to hold 35 folks and carry them someplace?
Some folks have accused the opposition of exploiting the present misfortune below President Tinubu’s administration simply to attain political factors. Do you assume your criticism is definitely serving to the nation proper now?
Effectively, if the president desires to be helped, from what we are saying, he can choose up sufficient assist. However in the event you say we’re making capital of misfortune, then they’re producing too many misfortunes as a result of in the event you assume that the opposition is profiting from your misfortune, then it is best to cut back the quantity of misfortune you’ve got. You possibly can’t fail in each side, important, major, fundamental and even tertiary. You fail in safety, fail within the economic system, fail in tradition and fail even in sports activities. So, you fail in the whole lot. And also you count on that persons are not going to comment on these failures. Are you saying {that a} neighborhood with folks working helter-skelter, the place even you, folks in your administration, don’t really feel secure, the place even the neighborhood you come from doesn’t really feel secure, is okay? And the huge assets of Nigeria are situated within the northern a part of Nigeria.
The whole north is nearer to Somalia than it’s to what Nigeria was once. So, you can not Afghanstanise your personal nation and count on folks to sing your praises. You can’t take each index that you just met and make it worse. Unemployment is worse, inflation is worse, safety is worse, the worldwide profile of the nation is worse. You both don’t have the competence to nominate ambassadors, or you’ll be able to’t discover competent ambassadors to nominate. Both facet of the coin is a failure. So, you’ll be able to’t police the state, you’ll be able to’t safe the state. You fail. You don’t even have sufficient psychological capability to elucidate your failure.
The US President, Donald Trump, lately repeated his description of Nigeria as a disgraced nation. Do you consider that may be a honest description?
I don’t agree with President Trump of america that we’re a disgraced nation. However, he’s talking the language of worldwide diplomacy. If you see the president of a rustic, you say Nigeria is right here. So, what he meant is that the Tinubu administration is a disgraced authorities.
The Secretary to the Authorities of the Federation prompt that latest surges in assaults could also be linked to international pursuits, notably from America. Does that rationalization maintain any water for you?
It is sort of a goalkeeper saying that the attacker or striker from the opposite facet is capturing the ball too quick. That’s an admission of failure. Your job is to catch the ball. So, whether or not the assault is coming from inside or from with out, your accountability is to cease the assaults. And each software on the planet that it is advisable cease the assault is given to you, and each time, at each alternative, at each juncture, you fail to make use of these instruments for what they’re meant for use for. Nigeria has sufficient cash, sufficient manpower and sufficient institutional expertise within the navy, sufficient affiliation of friendships all around the world, sufficient technological and scientific and different expertise inside Nigeria to defend this stunning nation.
You don’t consider there’s any rationalization that is sensible as to why Nigeria is fighting the dimensions of insecurity that we’re coping with proper now?
The reason that is sensible is that we’ve got a failed authorities; that’s it. There’s no different manner as a result of the type of problem or challenges that we face is one-tenth or one p.c of what Ukraine is dealing with, or what different nations are dealing with, together with what America itself is continually dealing with.
Are you saying that Ukraine has the type of help that Nigeria doesn’t have; I imply the help of Europe and the US?
The place Ukraine is at the moment, the place will probably be tomorrow and the place it was yesterday is a mirrored image of the type of management it has at each time limit. When you had a management that’s extra severe than the one you’ve got now, even the conflict wouldn’t occur. And when you have one that isn’t as sturdy as you’ve got now, they might have fallen way back. Allow us to perceive one thing clearly; the job of the federal government of a rustic is to safe that nation, and also you want assets to take action. And when these assets can be found to you, you haven’t any excuse to provide. Why keep on the job when you’ll be able to’t do it? Among the causes they’re giving that the job is hard or that it’s unpredictable, are causes you give whenever you’re resigning. These usually are not causes you give whenever you’re on the job.
So, in the event you deliver a safety guard to your own home, and he says, oh, the gate is simply too heavy, the intruders are too many, he’ll let you know he’s on his manner out and why he can’t do the job. You can’t say that you just have no idea, otherwise you didn’t know, in 2023, whenever you had been saying it’s my flip, it’s my flip, that you just didn’t know that it was your flip to struggle Boko Haram, your flip to repair the economic system, your flip to develop the potentials of the nation, your flip to signify the nation internationally and your flip to make Nigerians pleased.
If it’s simply your flip to occupy the seat and nothing extra, then you definately’re taking that flip to go away, as a result of the discussions we’re having usually are not surrounding issues which can be non-compulsory. We’re not discussing subsidy, worth enhance, we’re discussing life or loss of life. We’re discussing the continuity of the nation or a fracture.
Do you see the present insecurity as an existential menace to Nigeria?
In fact, it’s. Two issues we’ve got. Downside primary, non-state actors have infiltrated the federal government. The federal government is absent-minded, absent from obligation. Now, it’s additionally deceiving itself, politically in a manner, to elongate its tenure, although it can’t do the essential operate. These are the issues. The residents have been coping. They need to have been on the road way back, however I don’t suggest that. I like to recommend that you have to be affected person, however our folks have been overly affected person. The disturbance within the nation is now inflicting worldwide concern to the purpose the place world powers are debating whether or not to take over the entire thing, as if we’re not a rising concern. The way of their intervention, the angulation of the argumentation, is suggesting that they’ve a specific part of their inhabitants that they really feel sympathetic in direction of, and that’s going to create inner alienation within the nation.
The presidency introduced that the US has reaffirmed its readiness to deepen safety cooperation and share intelligence. Isn’t this a constructive growth and a potential manner out of the disaster?
There’s no ending but. There’s nothing to be pleased about but. There are three issues in these first statements. One, what they are saying america authorities is prepared or able to do is what they’ve at all times been able to do, and so they have been doing. Lots of the platforms our armed forces are utilizing come from america or from the allies of america who would ordinarily not give these platforms to us, besides america agrees. The Tremendous Tucano that was offered to President Buhari throughout Trump’s first time period is a mark of US willingness to cooperate — in contrast to the Obama days, the place Obama was, to my view, unfairly and unreasonably non-cooperative with the federal government of President Goodluck Jonathan as a result of they had been political about it. They’d grow to be partisan in Nigerian politics. So, the US below Trump, has at all times been prepared to assist, however he’s like making an attempt to hold a baby and the kid refuses to lift his palms, or you might be dragging him and kicking and screaming. The federal government, till this fireplace was turned towards them, didn’t take this matter critically, it was enterprise as traditional, and so they had gotten comfy with the enterprise of the industrial side of insecurity, the making of cash and turning issues over, and buying and selling in insecurity and taking that as a establishment.
So, a few of the fire-brigade strategy that they’re utilizing now has at all times been out there to them. Even when you wouldn’t select ambassadors all around the world, you’ll select ambassadors to america, to the UK, to Russia, to China, to France and to be a member of the Safety Council of the United Nations. That’s widespread sense. When you can’t do this, there’s no cause so that you can be calling your self President of Nigeria. So, you might select to not ship an envoy to Estonia or another nation, however you can not fail to ship ambassadors to Germany, to different locations the place you’ve got your core enterprise folks. In india, for instance, you can not fail to do this. You must ship a excessive commissioner to India. So, you didn’t do this. Now, you might be sending a nationwide safety adviser to go and have discussions with individuals who, as a member of the opposition, as a recognized politician in Nigeria, after I go to Washington, these identical folks have discussions with me. I can’t final two, three or 4 days in Washington or London or wherever. As soon as they know I’m round, there would be the ambassador or anyone who will say, oh, you’re a chief of a celebration in Nigeria. We wish to discuss your nation. So what’s particular about that?
With your personal worldwide contacts, have you ever and different opposition figures been working behind the scenes to calm tensions or have you ever merely been watching the Tinubu administration wrestle?
We’re not bystanders as a result of it’s our nation. It’s not Tinubu’s nation. Tinubu is a mistake. The nation is a actuality. Primary, I’ve been to the Home of Lords. I’ve been to London. I’ve talked to folks there. You possibly can’t say, no person can say, they don’t have a Nigerian intelligence company to provide them reviews. No one can say I spoke towards the nation. I’ve been chatting with People for a very long time. I’ve by no means spoken towards the nation. So, we converse for the nation. However, we can’t deny the truth that what is clear to the folks you might be speaking to, in the event you don’t wish to lose credibility, is that they know you don’t have a correct authorities at residence; a authorities that behaves like a authorities. So, they’ll ask you, what are you able to do to make issues higher, as a result of they too, in some areas, need a greater companion to cope with at residence? I used to be in London two weeks in the past. I used to be admitted to the Home of Lords. I sat with them throughout their proceedings. We talked about Nigeria.
After that, we had dinner, lunches, the place they had been elevating folks to speak about Nigeria, what you consider this? You could have seen my intervention, my opinion in The Impartial of the UK. You’ve seen a few of my intervention within the media, together with the worldwide media. I’ve at all times been supportive of my nation. I’ve at all times stated, don’t invade Nigeria. Don’t throw bombs into Nigeria. Strive as a lot as potential to cooperate with the federal government that’s in Nigeria. They’ve shortcomings. They’re not a severe set of individuals however do not forget that there’s a longstanding relationship between Nigeria and your nation, and it is best to develop your interplay with members of the civil society, with the opposition, and all of that, and to see that, general, we’re not handled like a banana republic, although we’ve got an novice authorities in energy now. However, we’re a regional energy in our personal proper, and I reminded them of the function we performed in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan, Lebanon and Congo and in lots of locations. So, we deserve respect, and so they perceive that. However they’ve, through the George Bush administration, except you abandon your work and begin impersonating members of the federal government, which I’m not, you can not lay their mattress for them. They’ll scatter it by themselves. They’re not orderly. So, for instance, they’ve a diplomatic downside. They’re making it appear to be a public communication downside. So they’re sending argumentative, loquacious folks to go on international media and annoy everyone. As an alternative of going to Washington, go to London, go to Paris, go to Moscow, go to Delhi, go to Beijing, and begin to speak softly to folks, attempt to know and use relationships with folks. Neglect about opposition, you’ll be able to say possibly we’re going to sabotage you alongside the best way. You could have people who find themselves impartial within the nation. You could have consultants, you’ve got retired ambassadors, you’ve got a complete institute of worldwide affairs, and I’ve spoken to folks there.
There have been some navy deployments and rescues in latest weeks and the president has ordered the withdrawal of police personnel from VIP safety duties to the frontlines. What do you make of the federal government’s response to this point?
I don’t have police guarding me. Nevertheless, what I can let you realize is, primary, nothing’s incorrect with the armed forces. They’ve the incorrect commander in chief, full cease.
It was the elected commander in chief. Yeah, you’ll be able to elect the incorrect individual. You should buy the incorrect shoe that doesn’t suit your ft.
So the difficulty is, you should use somebody to purchase the incorrect shoe and have foot poisoning. The issue dealing with Nigeria at the moment is that the commander in chief will not be commander in chief. He could make commander in chief out of himself if he desires, however he’s neglecting that mission.
Now I’m pleased that he additionally is aware of that he doesn’t should go all around the world on a vogue parade, that he can truly sit at residence, go to the state of affairs room, and work together together with his safety chief. Isn’t that what he’s been doing? I imply, he didn’t go to South Africa, he shelved a few of his worldwide engagements to remain again residence. We’re speaking of episodic, reactive actions. We’re not speaking of systematic work of a commander in chief.
I noticed an image of the president speaking with the chief of military employees. As commander in chief, that’s not how I’m going to do it. So he must take a cue from earlier commanders in chief.
Ibrahim Babangida is kind of articulate, speak to him. It doesn’t matter what your political disagreement with him, he’s received to know the right way to be a greater commander in chief. As a result of I did all of these issues, making ready myself to be a commander in chief. He’s not commanding the armed forces correctly; he’s not interacting with them.
