President Bola Tinubu has directed the Minister of State for Defence Dr Bello Matawalle to relocate to Kebbi State to oversee operations following the pre-dawn abduction of schoolgirls from a Government boarding school in Maga.
The instruction reflects the gravity of another mass school kidnapping that has reopened old wounds and tested the credibility of security claims made by Abuja.
The attack took place in the early hours when gunmen stormed dormitories and seized 24 to 25 students, killing at least one staff member and wounding others.
Security forces and local vigilantes have launched intensive searches in surrounding forests and along known bandit routes as families wait in anguish for news of their children.
International wire reports place the number abducted at about 24 to 25 and say two students have managed to escape and return.
The choice of Dr Matawalle to lead the on-the-ground response is politically and operationally fraught. Matawalle was governor of Zamfara State from 2019 to 2023 and managed the aftermath of the large Jangebe abduction in February 2021 when more than 200 girls were taken and later released.
That episode remains a touchstone. It is cited by supporters as experience in negotiation and by critics as symptomatic of a security approach that frequently relied on opaque contacts and, some allege, compromises with armed groups.
Recent reporting has intensified scrutiny of Matawalle’s past record. SaharaReporters published detailed allegations from a former aide who claims Matawalle maintained lines of contact with notorious bandit commanders while governor, facilitated vehicle transfers and bought stolen cattle from criminal networks.
The account names specific commanders and cites transfers of Toyota Hilux pickups as part of a network of patronage. If proved these claims would amount to an abuse of public office with profound national security ramifications.
The president’s decision to postpone scheduled diplomatic trips as he awaited security briefings underlines how the government perceives the incident.
Tinubu’s immediate response was to centralise oversight and to signal that Abuja will be visibly involved in the rescue efforts. Yet centralisation alone will not answer crucial questions about intelligence, command and control, and possible local collusion that successive kidnappings in the north-west have exposed.
Statistically the problem is stark. Mass abductions of students have recurred across the north and central belts over the past decade with the nation still haunted by Chibok in 2014 and other high profile kidnappings since.
Analysts note that school attacks have become a preferred tactic for ransom seeking gangs and political spoilers alike. The persistence of these attacks points to failures in deterrence and to contested lines of accountability between national and state security architectures.
From a conservative perspective the policy priorities must be clear and immediate. First, an aggressive rescue posture driven by coordinated military, police and intelligence assets. Second, a full forensic audit of any credible allegation that sitting or former officials maintained operational links with criminal networks.
The SaharaReporters allegation demands comprehensive documentary cross-checking. The whistleblower said the allegation can withstand scrutiny through phone records, vehicle registrations, and procurement logs. If state resources were diverted to armed groups that would be a crime against the polity.
Parliament and independent oversight bodies should also be mobilised. Public hearings would allow security agencies to explain chain of command, to produce evidence about the origin of vehicles allegedly transferred to armed groups, and to publish the operational assessments that informed recent counter-banditry campaigns.
Transparency will help to restore citizen confidence and to separate competent field leadership from political patronage.
Finally, this crisis should prompt a sober national reckoning about prevention. Hardening schools, improving rural intelligence networks, protecting night watches and closing supply lines for illicit arms all require more than press statements. They require money well spent and officials held to account.
Families of the kidnapped deserve both results and the truth. They cannot be offered rhetoric in place of rescue or enquiries in place of action.
President Tinubu’s order that Matawalle move to Kebbi signals urgent political attention. It must now be matched by crisp operational success and by an unflinching probe into allegations that, if true, would have corroded the very institutions charged with protecting Nigerians. The nation can accept no less.
Follow us on our broadcast channels today!
- WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VawZ8TbDDmFT1a1Syg46
- Telegram: https://t.me/atlanticpostchannel
- Facebook: https://www.messenger.com/channel/atlanticpostng
