Former Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Political Matters, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has expressed concern over continued attacks and killings in parts of Nigeria, particularly in the northeastern region, urging national leaders to take stronger action to address the security crisis.
Baba-Ahmed made the remarks during an interview on Trust TV News on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, while reacting to reports of a recent attack on a village in Borno State that resulted in multiple deaths and abductions.
Speaking during the interview, he said the scale of the incident should have provoked stronger reactions across the country. “Last week, another depressing and troubling news about an attack in a village in Borno State hit Nigerians. The sheer numbers of people who were killed, slaughtered, abducted should have alerted a country, any country in the world, unless it is Nigeria,” he said.
According to Baba-Ahmed, repeated incidents of violence in different regions have led to a level of public desensitization toward the situation. “It would appear that we have become so desensitized to killings in the northeast, in north central, in the northwest,” he stated.
He also referenced reports suggesting that the attacked community had been overtaken by insurgents who publicly celebrated the incident. “Even this massive outrage against a village taken over by Boko Haram, taken over according to Boko Haram permanently, complete with videos and celebrations by Boko Haram, doesn’t appear as if Nigerians are alarmed enough to say, let’s do something different,” Baba-Ahmed said.
The former presidential adviser noted that the scale of violence and displacement over the past month has been significant. “In the last one month, including the period of 50 days we have spent during the Ramadan, and the lent fasting period, only God knows how many people have died or have been kidnapped or have been displaced by killers, kidnappers and marauders of all types,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed also criticized the tendency to attribute the violence to religious divisions rather than addressing the broader security challenge. “We blame each other. Muslims are killing Muslims. Christians are killing Christians. Americans are blaming the Nigerian government, saying they are not protecting Christians,” he stated.
He further argued that government responses have largely consisted of statements of condemnation without substantial changes in strategy. “In the meantime, the simple truth about it is our leadership routinely churns out these statements of condemnation. And then the next, we wait for the next attack. And the next attack,” he said.
Calling on public officials to fulfill their constitutional responsibilities, Baba-Ahmed urged leaders to prioritize the safety of citizens. “Now, let’s make it very clear to our leaders. We will not stop complaining. We will not stop demanding that you should do something to secure us,” he said.
He added that the responsibility for protecting citizens lies with those in leadership positions across government. “From President Tinubu to everybody who had sworn on the Bible, on the Quran, that they will protect the Nigerian citizen and prepare a context for which he or she can pursue his legitimate livelihood,” Baba-Ahmed stated.
Concluding his remarks, he emphasized the urgency of the situation, especially during significant religious periods. “We say to you, the blood of these people is on your head. It’s not nice to speak like this, but there’s nothing else to say. In the month of Ramadan, so much blood is being shed. In the month of Lent, when people are fasting, so much blood is being shed. And all we see are press statements,” he added….See More
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