Scapegoating Communities won’t work: Reno Omokri’s Flawed Analysis is Questionable and Troubling
Reno Omokri’s assertion that “homegrown terror thrives solely due to local support” fundamentally distorts Nigeria’s security crisis. His selective citation of Anambra Governor Soludo’s unverified claim—that “99% of kidnappings in Anambra are by Igbo people”—ignores empirical national data. Research by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Global Terrorism Index documents terrorism as a cross-regional threat: bandit groups in the Northwest caused more civilian deaths in 2021 than Boko Haram in the Northeast, while separatist violence in the Southeast coexists with farmer-herder conflicts in the Middle Belt. These patterns confirm terrorism transcends ethnic or local boundaries, with groups like ISIS-West Africa operating in multiple states. Blaming communities alone is a dangerous oversimplification.
Omokri’s attempt to absolve the federal government of responsibility for “homegrown terror” contradicts Nigeria’s constitutional framework. The President is constitutionally mandated as Commander-in-Chief, controlling all military, police, and intelligence agencies. Federal failures are well-documented: the “super camps” strategy concentrated troops in urban areas while ceding rural territories to terrorists, enabling kidnappings. The 2021 Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering (GIABA) report confirmed Nigeria’s failure to disrupt terrorist financing networks funding Boko Haram and ISIS-WA. Further, the National Security Adviser admitted in 2023 that poor inter-agency coordination and inadequate border surveillance technology fuel cross-border terrorism. These systemic federal shortcomings cannot be dismissed as mere “porous borders.”
The regional comparisons Omokri draws are equally misleading. While praising Amotekun’s purported “29% crime reduction” (a statistic unsupported by Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics), he ignores that Nigeria ranked 8th globally in terrorism impact in 2023. Amotekun’s effectiveness relies partly on federal resources, including intelligence sharing and joint operations with the military. Conversely, his characterization of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) ignores context: the Southeast faces unique federal security pressures, including militarized responses to separatist movements and inadequate deployment of counter-terror resources. In the North, vigilante groups like Civilian JTF depend on federal air support and intelligence. No regional initiative can succeed without federal collaboration—a reality Omokri overlooks.
Ultimately, Omokri’s narrative reflects political bias, not evidence. His focus on “Obidients” and ethnic framing (“Igbo origin”) diverts attention from structural failures. Nigeria’s security crisis demands federal accountability: 2 million remain displaced in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe due to terrorism; bandit attacks in the Northwest killed more civilians than direct terrorism in 2021. The UNODC emphasizes that effective counter-terrorism requires federal leadership in rule-of-law frameworks, prosecuting financiers, and reintegrating combatants—not scapegoating communities. True security hinges on cooperative federalism, not divisive rhetoric that shields central authorities from scrutiny.
Dr Chukwuemeka Ifegwu Eke
