The Nigerian President has declared a nationwide security emergency in a move aimed at countering the increasing threat of armed militia. It comes after a wave of kidnappings and attacks on Christians.
The situation in Nigeria has continued to alarm international outsiders, particularly those concerned with the country’s Christian population.
US President Donald Trump said he would be redesignating Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” due to persistent anti-Christian violence.
Despite being around 50 per cent Christian, Nigeria is ranked by Open Doors as the 11th worst country in the world for anti-Christian persecution. Every year more Christians are killed or abducted for their faith than any other country in the world, usually by Islamic militants.
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has announced a near doubling in the size of the police force, aiming to increase current numbers from 30,000 to 50,000.
The Nigerian security services have been criticised for inadequate responses to militant attacks, often not being present at all.
As well as beefing up security, the president called upon all sections of society to do their part in ending the violence. He appealed to Fulani herdsmen, who are often responsible for the attacks, to end open grazing and to hand in their illegal weapons. The president also called upon churches and mosques to provide for their own security, particularly during service times.
The president advised that boarding schools not be located in remote areas, as there have been numerous instances of militants kidnapping children, most famously in 2014 when Islamic group Boko Haram kidnapped 276 girls in Chibok - 91 of the girls are still unaccounted for.
This month, mass kidnappings returned when over 300 students and staff were taken from the Catholic St Mary High School, in Papiri district in Niger state. While 50 children later managed to escape, at least 265 students and teachers remain in captivity.
Prior to that, 38 members of the Christ Apostolic Church were kidnapped by Fulani militia. They were later released.
This week Mervyn Thomas, the founder president of Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), warned that violence against Christians has become so prevalent in parts of Nigeria that many Christians are effectively “under siege”.
Earlier this year Catholic bishop Wilfred Anagbe said that massacres during Christian festivals were becoming “customary” in parts of the country, while another bishop John Bakeni last month warned that in some parts of the country the violence had “assumed genocidal character”.
Scott Bower, CEO of CSW, welcomed moves by Nigeria's leadership to treat the issue with greater seriousness.
“We welcome the fact that Nigeria’s existential crisis, and the suffering of ordinary citizens who continue to be terrorised and commoditised by violent non-state actors across the country, are finally being acknowledged and addressed at the highest levels of government, along with the plight of the under-resourced armed services," he said.
Bower also urged caution in the proposed recruitment efforts, noting concerns raised by Nigerian politicians that some of those attempting to join the security services are in fact members of militant groups like Boko Haram.
