If there is anything that is common in the whole of Nigeria, apart from a failing economy, it is government’s in-ability to protect the lives of the citizens it has sworn to protect. From the North to the south, East to the West, security of people’s lives and properties is but a mirage. Herdsmen rampage, stealing and killing have been the order of the day. The other day, just some few days before the new year, over a dozen people were rounded up and murdered by unknown gunmen in Rivers state.

As if that was not enough, some communities in Benue state were attacked and innocent people were murdered by rampaging herdsmen. What about atrocities in other parts of Nigeria that Nigeria media houses aren’t covering? Kaduna, North-East to mention a few. The two examples were just the ones making the headlines right now. It just boils down to the question of when all these senseless killings would stop, if they will ever stop.

The government needs to be proactive in curbing these senseless killings. Nigerians cannot continue to suffer the ineptitudeness of this administration in the areas of security. It is not enough for government to promise security of lives and properties, those behind these gruesome attacks must be apprehended and be made to face the full wrath of the law. This would serve as a deterrent for others who are contemplating committing such a crime.

Like i have written before in my previous article, these killings once again brings to the fore, the argument for the establishment of state policing. At this point in Nigeria, being faced with myriad of security challenges; allowing the states to have their own policing system should no longer be swept under the carpet by the government. Many may want to argue where States would get the wherewithal to run their own police, especially when states like Kogi and others could barely pay salaries.

But one thing is certainly sure. Where there is a will, there would be a way. The earlier we embrace this fact, the quicker it will be overcoming some of these security problems. Before, it was Boko haram and kidnappings across the nation that were the order of the day. With relentless efforts from the Nigerian army, boko haram is already becoming a thing of the past. At least, senseless bombings here and there have been greatly reduced. Kudos to our galant soldiers and civilian JTF doing a great job in the North-East.

Now, it is the Fulani Herdsmen, who knows what is in the pipeline tomorrow? Unlike those clamouring that Nigeria is not ripe for a state police, when is Nigeria then going to be ripe for it? Does nation grow above insecurity? Will Nigeria grow above these numerous security challenges without taking a concrete decision? All these questions should be pondered upon. The President’s sympathy for those who lost their lives and properties isn’t enough, he must make decisions that would ensure lives and properties of those he has sworn to protect are secured.