By Suleiman Abubakar
President Tinubu’s Bold Fight Against Insecurity In Nigeria
It would be unfair to ignore the reality that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inherited a country deeply scarred by insecurity. From insurgencies in the northeast to banditry and kidnappings across the northwest and central regions, the challenges he met on assumption of office were severe and long standing. Any leader stepping into such a situation would have inherited a monumental burden, yet Tinubu has shown political will, urgency, and determination from the very beginning.
One of the strongest signs of his seriousness is his clear directive to security agencies. Just recently the President stated:
“The DSS has my authority to immediately deploy all the forest guards already trained to flush out the terrorists and bandits lurking in our forests. There will be no more hiding places for agents of evil.” — President Bola Tinubu
A statement like this is not mere rhetoric. It reflects a readiness to confront criminals wherever they hide, and a commitment to aggressive, coordinated action. Nigeria’s forests and remote reserves, long safe havens for kidnappers, bandits, and extremist groups, are now being targeted under a national initiative to reclaim them.
Indeed, under this renewed strategy, there have been tangible victories. In recent operations across Katsina State and Zamfara State, troops under the joint operations umbrella reportedly neutralized bandits and rescued kidnap victims. In one engagement, terrorists moving kidnapped victims through forested areas, from one forest to another, were intercepted, forcing them to abandon their captives.
In April 2025, a student abducted in Kebbi State was recovered alive by a combined team of police and vigilantes from a forest in the Dakingari area, showing that forest based rescue is possible when security forces act decisively.
The paramilitary forest guard initiative has been formally launched. The federal government announced plans to deploy over 130,000 armed forest guards nationwide, covering all Nigeria’s 1,129 forest and game reserves, many of which had become de facto sanctuaries for bandits and terrorists.
These developments suggest that the administration is not merely issuing statements, but building new security architecture aimed directly at the root of the problem, criminal enclaves hidden deep in forests, often beyond regular policing reach.
Yet, at the same time, the news remains grim in many parts of Nigeria, a reminder of how deep and widespread the problem is. In just the past few weeks alone, more than 300 schoolchildren and 12 teachers were abducted from a boarding school in Niger State, a tragic mass kidnapping that shocked the nation. As of now, only some children have escaped or been released.
Earlier, in Kaduna State, the infamous abduction at a school in the town of Kuriga saw dozens of students taken by gunmen riding on motorcycles. That event, underlining how vulnerable many rural and forest fringe communities remain, is a somber reminder of the stakes.
The scale of losses among security personnel during anti banditry operations has been heavy. For example, in just one state, more than 130 security agents, including local vigilantes, police officers, and other rural security personnel, have died in the past years fighting bandits.
What this mix of results shows is that reform and enforcement are underway, but the structural nature of Nigeria’s insecurity means the fight is long term, complicated, and demanding. The forest guard initiative and renewed military efforts under Tinubu’s leadership have begun to produce positive outcomes, rescues, interdictions, and reclaiming territory once dominated by armed criminals. But the spate of recent mass kidnappings reveals how fragile security still is, especially in remote and poorly policed regions.
In that context, the President’s message, that there will be “no more hiding places for agents of evil”, is both aspirational and necessary. It signals a commitment to root and branch action, reclaiming forests, deploying trained armed guards, coordinating intelligence, and prioritizing vulnerable zones.
Yes, challenges remain, and the cost has been high. But the direction is clearer now than ever, from reactive security to proactive, territorially re secured Nigeria, from helplessness to resolve. Under Tinubu’s tenure, there is a tangible chance that communities will gradually emerge from fear, if the strategy is sustained, intelligence is sharp, and forest based criminal enclaves are neutralized for good.
Written by Suleiman Abubakar
Senior Special Assistant Research Documentation and Strategy II to the Kaduna State Governor