The Founder of Naija Lives Matter and Mayor of Fadeyi, Dr. Ope Banwo, says Nigeria will continue to struggle with insecurity until the country confronts uncomfortable truths and holds powerful actors accountable.
Speaking as a guest speaker at the Africa Leadership Group’s Nigeria Leadership Series, Dr. Banwo said the single biggest obstacle to progress is the nation’s unwillingness to demand honesty and responsibility in the fight against terrorism.
“The reason things don’t move forward in Nigeria is simple — we don’t try to get at the truth. We don’t hold people accountable,” he said.
Delivering a lecture titled “Challenges of Insecurity: Way Forward and Expected Outcomes,” Dr. Banwo called for an independent, multi-faith audit of terror financiers, protection networks and persistent security failures.
“We need to know why these failures keep happening. Is it engineered? Evidence will kill conspiracy theories. We will know,” he declared.
He outlined nine major recommendations, including rebuilding the country’s intelligence system, deploying drones, creating data-driven early warning systems, and making kidnapping “unprofitable.”
According to him, kidnapping in Nigeria has evolved into an organized criminal economy.
“It’s a business. Follow the money. When the return on investment collapses, the kidnap economy will collapse,” he said, accusing some religious leaders of brokering ransom deals.
Dr. Banwo also urged government to adopt public naming and shaming of verified terror financiers and kidnap collaborators, arguing that social accountability works uniquely well in Nigeria.
“Even the most wicked person in Nigeria likes to be seen as a good person,” he said.
“When you name someone a terrorist or kidnapper, nobody will even visit their house.”
Other recommendations include a full military reset, procurement transparency, and reviving the ECOWAS–Sahel Joint Operations to disrupt arms inflow and cross-border terrorist networks.
On the farmer–herder conflict, he called for modern land and resource governance, including digitalized land use and an honest reconsideration of ranching systems.
“Survival is one of the strongest instincts. If grasses die in the north and there is green land in the south, the cows will move. We must think practically,” he argued.
Dr. Banwo ended with a call for a non-partisan security pact ahead of the 2027 elections, warning that political manipulation of insecurity continues to fuel violence.
“Nigeria’s security has moved from tragedy to a credibility collapse of the state,” he said.
“If credibility dies, unity dies. Nigeria becomes a map, not a nation. We don’t need more speeches about security — we need security that ends the need for speeches.”
