Nigeria needs total lockdown to flush out terrorists — Ex-army chief, Buratai

Nigeria’s former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai (Retd.), has proposed implementing a nationwide lockdown as a bold measure to curb the escalating security threats in the country.

Buratai suggested that the government adopt a lockdown strategy similar to the one used during the COVID-19 pandemic. He argued that such an approach could help identify and neutralize terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers terrorizing communities nationwide.

“We can lock down this country to make sure everybody concentrates and deals with this cankerworm called terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, and so on,” Buratai said during an appearance on Channels TV’s Sunrise Daily on Friday.

He reminded Nigerians of his prior warnings regarding the prolonged nature of the ongoing security challenges.

Citing past examples of national unity, Buratai referenced the response to the Maiduguri flood, highlighting how the country came together to support affected residents. He suggested a similar mobilization could help tackle insecurity.

He said: “If you can remember, just before I left office, and of course immediately when I left office, I was appointed ambassador of Republic of Benin, I sent a lot of warning that this insurgency may last longer. I don’t want to quote the number of years that I mentioned, but I said it will last longer. It is a sort of warning that we really need to have a long-term plan, it is not something that you will just wish away.

“For example, I am not trying to give any excuse but the point is when there is a national crisis, we need to mobilise everybody, not just the military alone. Look at COVID-19, how much was spent? How much was invested into information, into communication, into advertisement and so on, into palliative, into a lot of preventative measures so much that the whole nation was locked down because of COVID-19.

“But we can do the same thing, we can lock down this country to make sure everybody concentrates and deals with this cankerworm called terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and so on. It is very fundamental, very important.

“I want to take also another example, Maiduguri flood last year, the whole country mobilised and supported the Borno State government and people of Borno to bring relief to make sure that the people were rehabilitated in the whole of the state, and it helped a lot.

“The same thing can be done to mobilise everybody to the North East, to the North West, psychologically through social media, through the press, and so on. Individuals can support the community.”

Buratai’s remarks come as public anxiety grows over the country’s security challenges, with citizens increasingly calling for decisive measures to confront terrorism and banditry.