SECURITY CHALLENGE: SEEK HELP, INVITE EX-IGP ABUBAKAR, OTHER EXPERTS, PRINCE ORJI COUNSELS TINUBU

Executive Director of Igbo Ndi Oma Africa TV, Prince Obinna Orji, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government to urgently seek additional expertise in tackling the worsening insecurity across the country.

Orji expressed concern over the growing wave of killings, particularly in the North, warning that the security situation had reached a level where no citizen could confidently claim to be safe.

He said during a chat with journalists that Nigerians were being confronted daily with frightening reports of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery and other violent crimes, stressing that the continued loss of lives and destruction of property could undermine the country's economic and social progress.

According to him, the Federal Government must be willing to seek help and tap into the experience of retired security professionals who have demonstrated competence in the management of complex security situations.

Orji specifically urged President Tinubu to seek an audience with former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Dikko Abubakar, whom he described as a "thoroughbred police officer" whose wealth of operational experience could be useful in confronting the country's current security challenges.

Recall that Abubakar served as the 16th Inspector-General of Police from 2012 to 2014.

Before becoming IGP, he held several senior command positions, including Deputy Commissioner of Police in Lagos and Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 12, Bauchi.

Contemporary accounts of his career described him as an operations-minded officer with a strong understanding of policing strategies and crime fighting.

Orji noted that Abubakar's experience was not limited to his years as Inspector-General.

His long career included responsibilities in criminal investigation, federal operations, airport policing and administration, while his tenure in Lagos was particularly notable for his hands-on approach to policing.

Reports from the period revealed he regularly joined officers on night patrols, demonstrating a direct engagement with operational challenges.

As IGP, Abubakar inherited a police force facing serious security pressures. At his confirmation in 2012, he pledged to strengthen the fight against crime and criminality and promised more vigour, efficiency and effectiveness in police operations. He rose to the challenge and his tenure also witnessed efforts to improve police capacity and operational readiness, including the introduction of a new camouflage uniform for police personnel.

Prince Orji argued that such institutional memory and field experience should not be ignored at a time Nigeria is battling increasingly sophisticated criminal networks.

"The government should not be ashamed to seek help where necessary. Nobody has all the answers. If there are Nigerians who have acquired decades of experience in dealing with crime and insecurity, government should engage them," he said.

He maintained that security must remain the foundation of every meaningful development, warning that investments, economic reforms and other government programmes would have limited impact if citizens continued to live in fear.

Orji therefore urged President Tinubu to broaden the government's security consultations and consider engaging experienced former police chiefs and other professionals with proven records in security management.

He said inviting Abubakar for consultation would not amount to undermining the serving security leadership, but rather would demonstrate that the government was prepared to deploy every available expertise to protect Nigerian lives and property.

"The time has come to put politics aside and bring everybody with something meaningful to offer to the table.

"Nigerians want to live, work and sleep without fear. That should be the priority," Orji said.

He appealed to the Federal Government to intensify intelligence gathering, strengthen cooperation among security agencies and adopt more proactive strategies to prevent attacks rather than merely responding after lives have been lost.

Orji stressed that the security crisis required an urgent, coordinated and professional response, saying Nigeria could not record genuine progress while citizens remained vulnerable to violent crime.