At the National Security Council meeting last week, the Nigerian Governors Forum presented a common position to President Muhammadu Buhari in making a demand for a bailout to fight insecurity in their states.
In their submissions presented by their chairman and Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi with his Borno State counterpart, Babagana Zulum, the governors highlighted the problems of poverty, unemployment, trust deficit between the military and civilian populations and the inflow of small arms into the country as reasons for insecurity.
In order to tackle the perennial insecurity, therefore, the governors argued that a special fund should be released to them to tuck those holes.
The governors backed their demand by alluding to the fact that they shouldered huge costs in funding the police and military operations in their states.
As a matter of fact, governors share in the heavy burden by providing security operatives with vehicles, gadgets, and finances needed to enhance their movement and operations.
However, it is common knowledge that such expenditures are captured under the amoebic sub-head of security vote. In the name of security vote, states’ resources have been drained through spending that is not accounted for in the name of the sensitive nature of security.
It is, therefore, shocking that governors who have such a blank cheque have gone cap-in-hand to Buhari for a bailout.
The demand for a bailout in anchored on the simplistic argument that insecurity is fueled by unemployment and poverty. Ironically, the two malaise are as a result of governors’ failure to galvanize resources in order to boost their economy.
The idea of a federal system of government presupposes that governors would engage in activities that would elevate their people from poverty through the judicious management of natural resources and internally generated revenue.
Since 2015, the Buhari administration has supported state governments with bailouts; first the sum of N338 billion to pay salaries. This was followed with N575 billion ‘restructuring bond’ advance.
In July 2016, the states got N3.6 billion from solid mineral saving, followed by N117 billion from the Petroleum Profit Tax. Also, there was a silent bailout from Paris Club refund worth about N649.4 billion, shared among state governments.
In spite of all these, some state governments still owe civil servants salaries and pensioners gratuity and monthly stipend. Also, most state governments have failed to provide basic infrastructure that would enhance better living conditions for their people.
From all indications, bailouts to states have not achieved their objectives. We insist that because security is captured in the Second Schedule of the Constitution that deals with Legislative Powers and categorized under the Exclusive Legislative List, the federal government should rather buckle up, re-engineer the military and other security agencies to deal with the challenges instead of giving another bailout to state governments.
It is half-truth to argue that insecurity is the consequence of poverty and unemployment. Insecurity in Nigeria is caused by the failure of security agencies to secure the country’s borders, mismanagement of intelligence obtained from the field, rivalry among the top-echelon of security agencies, indiscipline and outright corruption in the system.
Government and agencies of government concerned are not unaware of these short-comings. The onus rests on them to revamp the systems, fish out saboteurs and those who profit from terrorism value-chain, and subject them to discipline, instead of pouring more money in the name of bailout into the pockets of state governors. It is not difficult to predict what would happen to any ‘security bailout’ to states.
We call on government to use available funds to recruit more security personnel and boost intelligence gathering through community policing. The harsh truth about insecurity in Nigeria remains the fact that security personnel are too few to prosecute the war from North to South.
Unless government overwhelms bandits and terrorists with more boots on the battlefield, the country would continue to be mired in the misery in which it is stuck.
Also, security agencies need to win the confidence of the local population in order to access intelligence, by ensuring that the anonymity of those who provide intelligence is assured and respected.
Bailout for governors is not the answer.
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