…Alleges 600,000 Killed, 2.2m Abducted Under Tinubu
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has challenged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), to travel by road without armed security escorts to prove their claim that insecurity has significantly improved in Nigeria.
The opposition party also alleged that more than 600,000 Nigerians had been killed and about 2.2 million abducted in the last three years under the Tinubu administration.
APM, in a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, accused the Federal Government of living in denial over the country’s security situation.
The party said Nigeria’s ranking as the fourth most terrorism-affected country in the 2026 Global Terrorism Index (GTI) contradicted claims by the government that security had improved.
It also faulted Musa for recently asserting that the country’s security situation had improved under Tinubu.
According to APM, Nigeria’s fourth-place ranking in the 2026 GTI represented a deterioration from its sixth position in the 2025 index.
The party said the government’s position was difficult to reconcile with the continued killings, kidnappings, banditry, displacement and other violent crimes being recorded in different parts of the country.
“The comments by the minister further expose the Tinubu administration’s insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians, who bear the pain of the daily killings, maiming, rape, abduction for ransom, and incarceration by bandits in dehumanising conditions in various parts of the nation,” the statement said.
APM further alleged that more than 600,000 Nigerians had lost their lives while approximately 2.2 million people had been abducted during the period under review.
The party cited a recent incident in Niger State, where it alleged that about 600 residents, mostly women, children and elderly persons, were abducted from Dekera, Gidan-Zana and Sabon Gida communities and remained in captivity.
It also cited figures attributed to SBM Intelligence, claiming that more than N7.78 billion was paid in ransom between July 2025 and June 2026.
The party described the development as evidence that kidnapping had increasingly become a monetised criminal enterprise.
APM accused the Federal Government of being disconnected from the realities faced by Nigerians, alleging that officials were either deliberately downplaying the security crisis or attempting to shape public perception.
The party therefore challenged Tinubu, Musa and other senior government officials to undertake road journeys without armed escorts if they were convinced that the country’s security situation had substantially improved.
APM argued that ordinary Nigerians continued to face serious risks while travelling on the nation’s highways.
The party called for a comprehensive strategy to tackle terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other forms of violent crime, alleging that the Federal Government had failed to implement an effective blueprint to address the crisis.
Despite its criticism, APM urged Nigerians not to lose hope, saying its presidential candidate, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, had a comprehensive plan to tackle insecurity and other national challenges.
The party appealed to Nigerians to support Makinde in the 2027 presidential election, describing him as “the people’s candidate” and expressing confidence that his administration would adopt a new approach to national security.
APM further said the Tinubu administration would leave office on May 29, 2027, urging voters to use the election to demand a change in the country’s approach to security and governance.
