Many Nigerians had foreseen that this would happen. This being the robbery attacks that have almost become commonplace in the South-Western part of the country especially in states like Ogun, Lagos, and Oyo. Many who had thought that any theft cases or robbery incidents would manifest only by household food items being forcefully carted away since the federal government did not put all odds in check before it declared the stay-at-home order, were perhaps taken by surprise when lots of lives were lost, citizens were injured, valuables were stolen in attacks that seemed like a brazen affront to the safety of the lives of citizens.
It was a friend who shared a Whatsapp message with a panic tone to me, urging that I pray for the residents of Ogun State in areas like Sango, Sagamu, Ifo, and others because robbery attacks in these areas and beyond were becoming more scary. Similarly, news reports also reeled out the unfortunate incidents that are associated with these dreadful attacks.
Painfully, the citizens cannot move out freely for the fear of contracting the deadly Coronavirus, and while staying in their homes they suffer from fervid apprehension and trepidation because the armed marauders can strike them at any time. To be candid, robbery attacks during this period are unfortunate and heart-wrenching. It is saddening when citizens who strove by all means to conform to the directives of government as regards the need to curtail the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic live in fear of being killed, maimed and emasculated by the men of the underworld. While some citizens battle with hunger as the so-called government’s palliatives have not proved sufficient to help the hard-scrabbled citizens, they are still not rest assured of being protected adequately from evil machinations. It took a while for the security operatives to counter these attacks.
The residents of Ogun State, according to news reports, were dazzled by the complete insouciance of the armed robbers who rob in the day as against their nocturnal activities. Even, some men in the police have been reportedly rendered immobile by these robbers. The robbers seemed to be at ease as they unleashed terror on residents, took possession of valuables, and the worst of it all was that they outsmarted the police as well as other security operatives by going free.
In Lagos State, the sad situation is the same as residents in some local government areas shared similar fate with their Ogun State counterparts. In Oyo State too, there are robbery attacks in some local governments which reportedly sprouted from cult clashes. What should be in place now is the alertness, efficiency and effectiveness of the security operatives to forestall any attacks—be it robbery or not—on the citizens. By doing so without any off-handedness and politicisation, they would make the citizens be sure that they are being protected, else the citizens can take up arms to confront the life-endangering attacks which can foil the government’s attempts to ensure the stay-at-home order and at large, jeopardise the nation’s security.
In my opinion, these attacks are not totally hunger-driven. The robbers or thugs, in my purview, are delinquents who took advantage of the lockdown to perpetuate criminal activities. In every case however, this shows that the building holding the security network in the country is on a very porous foundation. What has happened to the police patrols? What has become of the security operatives designated to enforce the lockdown? Why are they absent when these illegal attacks were ongoing? I would not be caught unawares if these attacks were later found to have some underlying political elements. One cannot be so confident that some big barracudas in the political force are not employing some youth to carry out these dreadful activities in return for some token. I would advise that the government immediately commence intelligence gathering to find out the source of these attacks, the characters involved, and sketch plans to counter these attacks in the most effective and efficient way.
However, the citizens should also assist the security operatives by giving information of any suspicious movements in their community because the truth of the matter is that the security operatives cannot do it alone. The citizens also have a major stake in ensuring peace in their respective communities and should be on the alert to call on the security operatives in case of any impending attacks. The Ogun State Government has said that they have begun counter attacks in affected areas in the state as they urged the citizens to remain calm. In Lagos State also, the police have been saddled with the responsibility to man areas that are prone to robbery and other attacks. While these are brilliant moves to regulate peace, it is noteworthy to add that security operatives should be in constant operation to ensure the safety of the citizens and not the few patrols they carry out which stop immediately after the attacks have been reduced to the barest minimum. The Federal Government should look into the issues since they are the main actors to ensure the protection of the lives and properties of the citizens nationwide.
However, the safety of citizens should not only be the top priority of government during this stay-at-home period alone, it should surely transcend after this period. It is pertinent to add also that a nation exists when there is peace and that insecurity threatens the longevity and prosperity of a nation. The Federal Government should learn from states where the armed forces find it hard to restore peace and order because of their off-handedness towards security matters that required swift action. The governors of the affected states should work closely with the Federal Government in restoring peace in affected areas in their states. The security of the lives and properties of the citizens should not be foiled by political rivalry or battle for supremacy. Irrespective of the political parties the governors of the aforementioned states belong to, they should understand that security comes first before anything else as democratisation cannot succeed in an unsecured state.
Asides the issue of ensuring security, the Federal Government should also be serious in giving palliatives to citizens during this lockdown period. Enough of sharing the meagre amount of N20,000 to the so-called poorest citizens of which there are no available data to ascertain their indigence. Many citizens are struggling to eat one time in a day, and if this lockdown continues and the government does not support the citizens as they claim they are doing, there may be an unprecedented massive breakdown of law and order.
It should be recalled however, that residents of Lagos State as well as in other states had initially defied the lockdown order before the security operatives forcefully ensured that residents obeyed the lockdown. Much as the Federal Government attempts to bring Coronavirus under an effective control, the citizens should also be protected on the other hand. And as Marcus Tarcus Cicero says, “The safety of the people shall be the highest law.”
Kareem Shamusudeen is a campus journalist at the University of Ibadan and can be reached via kareemshamusudeen@gmail.com
Opinion AddThis : Original Author : Kareem Shamusudeen Disable advertisements :
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