Former presidential candidate Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has publicly warned that the federal government is losing its grip on security in Northern Nigeria, citing a surge in coordinated terrorist attacks.
Hashim voiced concern following a recent gunbattle at a police outpost in Rogun Village, Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara State, where two security operatives were killed. He pointed to renewed attacks in Kebbi State, including the abduction of 25 schoolgirls and the killing of a customs officer, as part of a broader trend.
He argued that these incidents show terrorists now operate across large areas of the North “without fear of the state,” and warned that rural communities are being “governed by fear” as non-state actors fill the vacuum. Hashim called for an urgent restructuring of Nigeria’s security architecture, demanding a national response to what he described as a “quiet surrender” of territories to armed groups.
