The Nation Newspaper

Category: Letters

  • El Rufai, an iconoclast, now politically homeless

    El Rufai, an iconoclast, now politically homeless

    • By Sunday Olagunju

    Sir: As a former Director-General of the Bureau for Public Enterprise, FCT Minister and two term governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El Rufai hasn’t been a pawn in the chessboard of contemporary Nigerian politics. As an actor in the Nigerian politics, and political polemics, both his social stature and political antecedents have continued to expose his expertise and suspicion in equal measure.

    Known for brewing social misgivings and causing political storms, the former Kaduna State governor is today politically homeless, having fallen flat at gimmickry, a political game he knows and plays best. As a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) El Rufai without batting any eyelid, dumped the APC, a party he worked hard for, accusing the party’s bigwigs of denying him a ministerial appointment, having failed security screening by the Department of State Security (DSS).

    Though he appeared unruffled and unmoved as a result of the unfavourable security report, yet the former governor, indubitably, bore unimpeachable grudges against President Tinubu, an erstwhile ally and a pathological hatred for the APC as a political body. After the ministerial disappointment, he told the whole world about his retirement from politics: “Since 2013, I have hoped that my personal values and those of the APC will continue to align until I choose to retire from politics”.

    After a while, the former Kaduna political stormy petrel probably has a re-think to return to politics, and at his earliest convenience pitched his tent with the Social Democratic Party (SDP). But it didn’t take two long before he was accused of causing disaffection by his characteristic inordinate ambition to hijack the party from its original founders.

    El-Rufai’s defection from APC to SDP on March 10, was announced with characteristic fanfare, but the relief he was seeking was painfully shortlived. He was soon disowned by the Kaduna chapter of the SDP, branding him as a usurper and a political interloper. But unmindful of his demonstrable political misdemeanour, El Rufai immediately began frolicking with the African Democratic Congress (ADC), towards a blind coalition with the sole aim of unseating the president come 2027.

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    In a swift reaction in early August, the Kaduna chapter of ADC warned El Rufai to steer clear of the party, charging him with undue attempts to sway the locus of the party towards personal advantage. They accused El Rufai of trying to undermine the unity of the party based on his brazen yeoman actions and warned ADC members to be wary of Rufai’s imperceptible politics. Today, El Rufai’s gallivanting across political parties, searching for relevance and political homestead, has ironically ended in utter deficits.

    With the likes of El Rufai hopping around political parties, ostensibly to hatch their political ambitions, there is palpable danger on the horizon that in the absence of a clear-cut ideology and cherished values, the country’s political development will continue to be taken for granted. The sort of political macabre dance around political parties by the likes of El Rufai, who are hell-bent on hijacking any party to push their selfish political agenda for 2027, has called for an inevitable deepening of the otherwise fragile party system presently the vogue in the country. 

    More than ever before, party discipline and values must be further deepened and jealously guarded to stem the likely escapades by political do-gooders like El Rufai who are trying to reap where they have never sowed.

    But sadly for now, El Rufai, the political stormy petrel and iconoclast, is politically homeless and socially disillusioned.  

    •Sunday Olagunju,

    Ibadan, Oyo State

  • On Nafisah, the English champion

    On Nafisah, the English champion

    Sir: Miss Nafisah Abdullahi is only 17 years old, yet she has already taken Nigeria to places many nations only dream of reaching. From Yobe, a state too often mentioned only in the language of poverty and conflict, she stood before more than 25,000 contestants from 69 countries in the TeenEagle Global Final Competition and emerged as the champion. She carried Nigeria’s name to the intellectual stage and defeated children from nations where English is not just learned in classrooms but lived in homes. That was her priceless gift to Nigeria.

    Nafisah’s story is about values. It is about what we choose to honour as a people. In this country, when footballers return with medals, they are welcomed with parades and rewards. When entertainers make noise abroad, we turn them into national idols. But when a young girl conquers the world with her mind, we greet her with silence. That silence is not empty; it is a lesson.

    Think of where she comes from. Yobe is not a place filled with world-class schools or endless opportunities. It is a place battered by poverty, scarred by insecurity, and haunted by the highest figures of out-of-school children in the country. It is a place where girls are too often married off young, their dreams cut short before they can even begin. Nafisah could easily have been one of those forgotten numbers. Instead, she fought through the darkness, studied where others gave up, and rose to defeat students from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada in their own language. That is not only radiant. That is defiance. That is resilience. That is Nigeria at its best.

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    Other nations know how to treat their treasures. Pakistan stood by Malala Yousafzai until she became a Nobel Prize winner and a global voice for education. India lifted Gitanjali Rao, a teenager named TIME Kid of the Year, and gave her platforms to inspire millions. Kenya celebrates its brightest minds with scholarships and presidential recognition. In the United States and the United Kingdom, children who win with their minds are given opportunities that change their lives forever. These countries understand that the true strength of a nation lies not only in athletes or entertainers but in the prowess of its children.

    Nafisah’s victory should not be another forgotten headline. It should be the spark of a national movement. She deserves a scholarship that secures her future. She deserves to be made an ambassador for girl-child education, carrying her story into classrooms and villages where girls are still told their only destiny is marriage. The First Lady should stand with her. The Yobe State government should lift her up publicly so her story becomes a source of pride and hope. Philanthropists, NGOs, and corporate leaders should support her not as charity but as an investment in the future of Nigeria.

    And if tomorrow Nafisah leaves Nigeria for a country that values her, who will we blame? If she becomes a professor abroad, a world-class innovator, or even a global leader, will we cry about brain drain? What moral right do we have to lament when we refused to keep her light burning here?

    Nigeria must stop dimming the dreams of its brightest children. We cannot keep clapping for dancers and athletes while ignoring the Nafisahs who show us that talent can rise from the roughest soil. If we want respect in the world, we must first respect knowledge at home.

    History will not remember the leaders who ignored genius. It will remember those who lifted it. Let it not be written that Nigeria built stadiums for athletes, celebrated singers with riches, and abandoned a 17-year-old girl from Yobe who conquered the world with English. Her triumph is Nigeria’s triumph. Our silence, however, is Nigeria’s shame.

    •Usman Abdullahi Koli,mernoukoli@gmail.com.

  • The menace of the mob

    The menace of the mob

    Sir: Another day in Nigeria, another dramatic lynching, and the list of those who have lost their lives to the mob grows even longer.

    As life has become gravely insecure, it has become easier than ever to die, specifically, to be killed. All it ever takes these days in Nigeria is a stray bullet, a false alarm, or an attack from any of Nigeria’s killer squads, and a country is left to again count its dead.

    Too many people have been killed, unaccountably, by the mob, and each time it happens, the rituals from government officials and security agencies are rinsed and repeated as if by rote. Then, when the noise dies down, business resumes as usual to await the next murder by the mob.

    About two weeks ago, the mob went into overdrive at the Ipata Market Area of Ilorin, Kwara State. Their victim was a destitute woman who was accused of being a kidnapper. She was brutally beaten before later succumbing to her injuries.

    Her family immediately demanded justice.

    The odious dust was yet to settle when the mob again descended on a food seller in Mariga, Niger State. She was accused of blasphemy, and despite attempts to involve traditional rulers to settle the matter, she was quickly beaten to death.

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    In 2023, in broad daylight in Jos, the Plateau State capital, a mob descended on Fwimbe Gofwan and ended his life on unfounded accusations of stealing. A year before Fwimbe’s death, it was the turn of Deborah Samuel Yakubu who was killed and burnt on accusations of blasphemy within the precincts of the Shehu Shagari College of Education in Sokoto State.

    These murderous incidents, which occur in different parts of the country, perpetuate a rabid tradition of widespread extrajudicial killings and hold up a blinding mirror to the twisted image of a country where life is extremely fragile and justice notoriously elusive. It mercilessly indicts Nigeria as a country in which no one has been held accountable for these deaths. The fact that murderers find safety in the number of the mob mauls whatever claim Nigeria has to security and dignity. It makes mincemeat of whatever pretences Nigeria makes about the sanctity of human life.

    The threat the mob poses to Nigerians everywhere is understated and underrated by those in authority. But it is telling that every now and then; it rears its ugly head to subject some helpless and hapless Nigerians to the most painful of deaths. The lack of accountability when these things happen is the only thing more jarring than the gruesome acts themselves.

    Nigerians who need no encouragement to lynch their fellow Nigerians for any reason at all need to ask themselves some poignant questions. Are they citizens or criminals? Are they human beings or savages?

    These questions and many more may never be answered by those who form the cowardly mobs that require no second invitation to take life.

    But they can yet be answered by the authorities in Nigeria, who have all the instruments they need to dig out those who do these things and subject them to the scrutiny of the law. That nothing is often done is testament to failure, dereliction, and injustice.

    •Kene Obiezu, keneobiezu@gmail.com

  • The silent force shaping 2027 politics

    The silent force shaping 2027 politics

    Sir: Money, machinery, and media dominate Nigeria’s political playbook. Yet in 2027, moral capital could re-emerge as a decisive force multiplier. Both 1993 and 2023 proved that empathy, dignity, and inclusion are not political luxuries; they are the silent power that determines whether a candidate’s message resonates across electoral blocs.

    A winning strategy must therefore anchor itself on three promises that ordinary Nigerians can touch and feel: food on the table, safety on the road, and proximity to governance. Increasingly, these are the everyday metrics by which households judge the state.

    Nigeria’s diversity defies one-size-fits-all messaging. Each region carries distinct anxieties shaped by history and economy, yet a unifying political vision must weave them into a shared fabric.

    In the North, security needs sustained attention; citizens want more than soldiers, they want safe farms and stable food supply. In the South-south, fairness in resource governance is paramount—empathy means turning oil wealth into tangible equity for neglected host communities. In the Southeast, small businesses crave credit access and relief from heavy-handed policing; protecting enterprise and dignity is non-negotiable. In the Southwest, cost-of-living and youth empowerment dominate, demanding real action on inflation and openings in tech and the creative economy. In the North-central, identity and land disputes test pluralism; here empathy means frameworks that transform diversity into strength, not strife.

    The task is not separate manifestos but tailored empathy, recognizing regional wounds while binding them into a national fulfilment.

    Citizens do not only want to be spoken for; they want to be spoken with. Micro-donations, for instance, have emerged globally as both fundraising tools and psychological ownership stakes. When citizens contribute, even in small amounts, they feel invested in the outcome.

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    But emotional ownership cannot rest on symbolic gestures alone. Ward-level operations where citizens encounter campaigns face-to-face must be professionalised. This is not about partisanship but about raising the standard of political engagement.

    The political energy of 2023 proved that Nigerians are hungry for moral imagination in politics. But imagination alone is insufficient. By 2027, the electorate will demand proof that empathy can be converted into structure, competent governance, professionalised field operations, and scalable relief plans.

    Here lies the paradox. Empathy must be married to competence. A campaign that connects emotionally but collapses structurally may inspire but not govern. Conversely, a campaign that builds machinery without empathy risks alienating the very citizens it seeks to govern.

    The winning formula, then, is a dual track: ruthlessly competent field operations aligned with an agenda of household relief that Nigerians can feel within weeks of governance.

    •Lekan Olayiwola, lekanolayiwola@gmail.com

  • Building AI literacy for every Nigerian

    Building AI literacy for every Nigerian

    Sir: Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant promise. It is here, reshaping how we live, work, and learn. From chatbots in banking to AI-driven tools in health care and agriculture, Nigerians already interact with this technology every day. Our students and teachers are no exception; many are experimenting with generative AI to draft essays, lesson plans, or job applications. The real question is not whether they will use AI, but whether they will be prepared to use it wisely, critically, and inclusively.

    Around the world, governments are moving fast. China has mandated AI instruction in all schools by 2025. Singapore is training every teacher in AI by 2026. The UK is heavily investing in AI-powered teaching resources. Even the United States, which has often moved slowly on education reform, recently launched a national strategy on AI literacy, with federal agencies funding teacher training, curriculum development, and public-private partnerships.

    These countries understand that AI literacy is foundational for future competitiveness. Nigeria must recognize this too.

    With more than 60 percent of our population under 25, Nigeria holds one of the largest pools of young talent in the world. Properly prepared, our youth could lead globally in AI innovation and entrepreneurship. But without deliberate investment, they risk being left as passive consumers of imported tools, vulnerable to misinformation, surveillance, and bias.

    Despite our reputation as Africa’s tech hub, Nigeria’s education system is not ready for this new reality. Too many schools still lack electricity and internet access, leaving rural students at risk of exclusion. Teachers have received little to no training in digital or AI tools, making it difficult for them to guide students responsibly. Policy remains fragmented, with the recently launched National Artificial Intelligence Strategy yet to shape curricula or practice in schools; worse, existing inequities especially those faced by girls and low-income families risk being amplified if AI access remains uneven.

    The economic stakes are high. AI is reshaping industries from banking to entertainment, creating new winners and losers in the labour market. Workers who understand AI will thrive; those who do not risk being displaced. Nigeria needs to integrate AI literacy into vocational schools, apprenticeships, and adult training, ensuring that workers in all sectors; from agriculture to fintech can adapt. One promising idea, borrowed from U.S. initiatives, is to establish regional “AI learning hubs” where schools, universities, and industries collaborate to provide skills relevant to local economies. A hub in Benue could focus on smart agriculture, while one in Lagos could emphasize fintech and creative industries.

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    We must avoid a generation of “AI copy-pasters.” Around the world, educators warn of “cognitive offloading,” where students rely on AI to complete tasks instead of engaging in critical thinking. This is already happening in Nigeria, where students use AI tools to generate assignments or CVs. Without guidance, we risk raising young people who can use AI but cannot question, innovate, or lead with it. True AI literacy must encourage active, critical engagement, not passive consumption.

    Nigeria is at a crossroads. Globally, more than two-thirds of students and educators already use generative AI, but only a minority of schools provide structured guidance. Our youth are eager and experimenting, but they lack national support. If we act now, we can turn this into a national advantage. That means embedding AI into curricula, training teachers, investing in infrastructure, and ensuring communities; from urban centres to rural villages are included. It means partnerships between government, telecoms, EdTech startups, and NGOs to expand access. It means seeing AI literacy not just as a technical skill, but as a public good; essential for democracy, equity, and economic resilience.

    AI will define the future of work, learning, and governance. The real question is whether Nigeria will define that future for itself, or allow it to be defined for us. The world is moving quickly. With bold leadership, Nigeria can prepare every learner not only to thrive, but also to shape and own solutions in the age of AI. The time to act is now.

    •Olasupo Abideen, abideenolasupo@gmail.com.

  • NYSC: Redefining national service

    NYSC: Redefining national service

    Sir: When the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) was established in 1973, it was hailed as a bold initiative to heal a divided nation. The scars of the Nigerian Civil War were still fresh, and the scheme was designed to foster unity, cultural integration, and patriotism among the country’s young graduates. For decades, it served as a rite of passage, bringing together youths from different ethnic and religious backgrounds under one national banner.

    Today, however, the NYSC is battling for survival. What was once a noble institution has become the subject of heated debate. With insecurity, poor welfare, and questions about relevance dominating discussions, many are asking: has the scheme outlived its purpose, or does it simply need urgent reform?

    The biggest concern facing corps members is insecurity. In recent years, young graduates deployed to volatile areas have fallen victim to kidnapping, insurgency, and communal clashes. Parents often express fear when their children are posted to certain regions, while some graduates resort to desperate measures to secure redeployment to safer states. The question many Nigerians are now asking is whether national service should come at the risk of young lives.

    Another major challenge is welfare. The monthly allowance of N33,000, though increased a few years ago, has been swallowed by inflation and the rising cost of living. Corps members often complain that their stipends barely cover feeding, transport and accommodation. Many end up depending on their families for survival, defeating the very essence of an independent national service year.

    Orientation camps, which are meant to be the foundation of the service year, also reflect the cracks in the system. While some camps boast of modern facilities, others are overcrowded and poorly maintained. Reports of inadequate toilets, shortage of water, and poor medical services have become common. For many corps members, the three-week camp is not just an orientation but a struggle to endure discomfort.

    Beyond infrastructure, the relevance of the NYSC in today’s economy is also under scrutiny. The Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme was introduced to empower corps members with vocational skills, but its impact has been limited. Many graduates complain of lack of materials, poorly trained instructors, and no follow-up support after training. As a result, the programme, though promising on paper, has failed to live up to its potential.

    Critics argue that the scheme is not aligned with Nigeria’s current developmental needs. In a world driven by digital technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship, NYSC still focuses heavily on routine postings and ceremonial community projects. For many graduates, the service year becomes a compulsory ritual rather than an opportunity to acquire skills that could transform their futures.

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    Because of these challenges, calls for reform—or even outright scrapping—have grown louder. Some Nigerians insist that the scheme has outlived its usefulness and now endangers the lives of young people. Others, however, maintain that NYSC remains one of the few institutions that bring Nigerians together, and that rather than scrapping it, the government should reform it to meet modern realities.

    Among the reforms being suggested are increasing corps members’ allowances, redeploying them only to safe areas, and upgrading camp facilities nationwide. Others believe the postings should be tied more closely to national needs in education, healthcare, agriculture, and digital innovation, so that corps members contribute directly to sectors that matter most.

    Despite its flaws, NYSC still carries a symbolic weight. It remains one of the few experiences that unite Nigerian youths, exposing them to cultures beyond their own. In villages and towns across the country, many corps members have touched lives through teaching, healthcare, and community development. The scheme’s potential for good is undeniable—if only it can be reformed to reflect the realities of the 21st century.

    As Nigeria looks to the future, the choice is clear. The NYSC must either be transformed into a dynamic institution that truly empowers youths and strengthens national unity, or risk fading into irrelevance as another once-great idea that failed to evolve with time.

    Ladi Maxwell, University of Maiduguri.

  • Education: From degree factories to skill incubators

    Education: From degree factories to skill incubators

    Sir: Education, at its core, is not the acquisition of certificates. It is the acquisition of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that make us functional human beings. Yet, too often, our curricula stops at theory. Students memorise content without understanding how it matters in their lives or future aspirations. What if curriculum developers took a deeper dive and refined the curriculum for relevance?

    Imagine if teachers made it a practice to highlight, perhaps briefly, why each lesson matters in the real world. Mastery of English, for instance, could be presented not just as a course requirement but as a tool to succeed in IELTS for a dream travel opportunity, to perform better across all other subjects, since English is the medium of writing, or to communicate effectively in a multilingual nation of over 500 languages. Relevance fuels motivation and motivation is what drives real learning.

    However, our current system restricts functionality. Internships and practical placements are mostly reserved for engineering, medical, technical, or education students. Why should that be so? Why shouldn’t every department give students the chance to apply their learning outside the classroom? Take English language departments as an example. Imagine graduates who had completed internships in media houses, publishing firms, advertising and PR agencies, embassies, NGOs, corporate organisations, schools, and language institutes. They would leave with tangible skills in editing, proofreading, translation, speech writing, voice-over, script writing, online tutoring, language consulting, and communication training. These are not abstract theories; they are marketable, life-shaping skills. And the same principle applies across every field of study.

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    Universities must design pathways where theory meets practice, so that graduates do not leave frustrated, holding degrees that cannot serve them in real life.

    Our universities must not remain degree factories. They must evolve into skill incubators; places where knowledge is consistently tied to application. Relevance and functionality must be the twin pillars guiding curriculum planners and educators. But while we wait for policy reform, students themselves must take the initiative: pursue internships, volunteer, freelance, and apply classroom knowledge in real situations. Education must not be passive; it must be activated.

    Just recently, I shared this advocacy with primary and secondary school educators. It was refreshing to see them already weaving relevance and functionality into their curriculum. My hope is that this vision spreads across all our institutions until relevance becomes as central to education as knowledge itself. Because in the end, education is not about knowing for its own sake; it is about knowing why it matters, and using that knowledge to live and function meaningfully.

    •Adebola Karamah Shogbuyi, PhD. <karamahshogbuyi1@gmail.com>

  • Varsity teachers deserve a living wage

    Varsity teachers deserve a living wage

    • By Peter Ovie Akus

    Sir: I was shocked by the recent disclosure by Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, immediate past vice-chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), at a public forum where he lamented the poor pay of lecturers. He stated that no fewer than 239 first class graduates of UNILAG employed as lecturers left the institution within seven years.

    In a country where the labour market is saturated, I can only imagine the depths of frustration that must have pushed these young, academically, and intellectually gifted lecturers to quit academia in exchange for seeking greener pastures elsewhere.

    The persistent low pay for lecturers and the concomitant strikes that often follows it, has become a recurring decimal which disrupts the country’s higher educational system. Yet, successive administrations have paid lip service to this critical issue.

    Emmanuel Osodeke, the immediate past president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), once declared that Nigerian lecturers were among the lowest paid in the world. He pointed out that in some African countries, no lecturer earns less than $2,000 (about N3.3 million) monthly, with professors earning up to $10,000 (around N16.5 million) monthly. Professor Ogundipe on his part, revealed that as vice chancellor, he earned a monthly salary of just N900,000 (approximately $580).

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    Still a professor in the system, his salary is slightly above N700,000 before tax deductions.

    I am not unaware that there are people who would read these figures and see nothing wrong with them. But if you look at it from the perspective of wages being a reward for value, you would see the danger ahead of us. Teaching is the foundation of every profession in the world. Without teachers, you cannot have doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. If we continue to pay lecturers peanuts, what will happen is that we would begin to attract low-quality lecturers while the high-quality lecturers either go overseas or pursue careers in other sectors. Low-quality lecturers inevitably means low-quality doctors, low-quality lawyers, low-quality engineers, etc. which will ultimately result in a low-quality nation.

    I doubt if there is any millennial or Gen Z who has gone through the public university system in Nigeria and did not suffer from the effects of strikes by lecturers. A four-year course would automatically be studied in five or six years without failing any course due to strikes for better pay by lecturers.

    Now we are hearing of another impending strike that has been dubbed as “the mother of all strikes”. President Bola Tinubu should ensure that no ASUU strike occurs during his tenure, as he promised. The easiest way to do this is 100 per cent implementation of the 2009 MOU with ASUU. Education is a vital sector that deserves adequate funding. Lecturers deserve a living wage.

    •Peter Ovie Akus,

    Ontario, Canada.

  • Fall of Ansaru leaders is a giant leap against terrorism

    Fall of Ansaru leaders is a giant leap against terrorism

    • By Ya’u Mukhtar Madobi

    Sir: Nigeria recently recorded a historic victory in its war against terrorism, underscoring the growing strength of the country’s intelligence network and operational capabilities. A few weeks ago, security agencies successfully captured two top commanders of Ansaru, an Al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group that has long terrorized Nigeria and its neighbours. This breakthrough is more than just another win against non-state actors—it is a decisive step towards dismantling one of the most lethal terror franchises in West Africa.

    The arrest of these kingpins, achieved after months of coordinated intelligence operations, signals that Nigeria is increasingly adopting proactive and intelligence-driven strategies that disrupt threats at their roots rather than merely reacting to attacks.

    Ansaru emerged in 2012 as a splinter faction from Boko Haram. From inception, it aligned itself with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and operated through covert sleeper cells and forest hideouts across northern Nigeria.

    The two men captured between May and July stands out as some of the most dangerous figures in Nigeria’s recent history. Mahmud Muhammad Usman, better known as Abu Bara’a, served as the self-proclaimed Emir of Ansaru and was long considered the spiritual and operational head of the group. His deputy and Chief of Staff, Mahmud al-Nigeri, also known as Mallam Mamuda, was notorious for overseeing training camps and operational logistics.

    Both men had evaded capture for years, topping Nigeria’s most-wanted list while simultaneously appearing on international watch-lists for masterminding high-profile terrorist attacks and kidnappings. Their trail of atrocities is long and bloody—from the 2022 Kuje Prison break, to the attack on a uranium facility in Niger Republic, the abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp in 2013, the 2019 kidnapping of Alhaji Musa Umar Uba, Magajin Garin Daura, and the abduction of the Emir of Wawa in Niger State.

    Beyond these incidents, intelligence reports confirm that the duo maintained active ties with terrorist groups in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso—connections that link Nigeria’s insurgency to the wider jihadist networks destabilizing Africa’s Sahel region.

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    So when National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu announced the arrests on August 16, he rightly described the operation as a “decisive blow” against Ansaru and a major milestone in Nigeria’s war on terror. Neutralizing the group’s central command, he emphasized, has significantly degraded its ability to plan and execute large-scale attacks.

    Recall that prior to the arrest of Ansaru top commanders, the operatives of the Department of State Service (DSS) had earlier arrested a terrorist kingpin, Abubakar Abba, the suspected senior commander of the Mahmuda terrorists’ group, operating across states in the North-central.

    Abba, believed to be the supreme leader of the group, who had been active along the Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State and its suburbs and parts of Kwara State in the past months, in particular, was said to have been arrested in Wawa town in Borgu. This is yet another significant milestone as per as counter-terrorism is concerned.

    While these feats deserve national celebration, it also calls for sober reflection. Arresting high-profile leaders is only one layer of defeating terrorism. Sustainable security requires dismantling the foundations that enable such groups to survive and regenerate.

    This means blocking their financial lifelines—whether from kidnappings-for-ransom, smuggling, or illicit mining revenues—while addressing their recruitment pipelines by countering extremist narratives through education, community engagement, and de-radicalization programs.

    Equally vital is strengthening border surveillance to curb arms trafficking, while leveraging drones and data analytics for predictive intelligence. These steps must form part of Nigeria’s wider counter-terrorism strategy.

    By doing so, Nigeria will not only safeguard its territorial integrity but also reinforce its emerging role as a regional leader in counter-terrorism. Already, the capture of Ansaru’s leaders has sent a strong signal across terrorist camps in Africa that Nigeria is no longer a safe haven for jihadist networks.

    Nonetheless, terrorism remains an adaptive threat. Groups splinter, mutate, and re-emerge if pressure eases. That is why the arrest of Abu Bara’a and Mallam Mamuda must be treated not as the end of a struggle but as the beginning of an intensified campaign.

    What must follow is the complete dismantling of their remnants, disruption of their financing structures, and the strengthening of governance in vulnerable communities. If Nigeria sustains this momentum—combining intelligence precision, military might, and socio-economic resilience—terror groups will not just be weakened but dismantled beyond recovery.

    •Ya’u Mukhtar Madobi,

    Kano.

  • Clean energy future hinges on affordable naira loans

    Clean energy future hinges on affordable naira loans

    • By Clement Chisom John

    Sir: Nigeria stands at a turning point. With ambitious targets for universal electricity access and clean energy adoption, the country’s renewable energy sector must scale up fast. But one stubborn obstacle continues to slow progress,  the lack of affordable, naira-based concessional financing, especially for women, low-income consumers, and emerging enterprises.

    While policymakers talk up renewable energy and pilot projects show promise, the ecosystem for local-currency concessional loans remains weak and underfunded. Institutions like the Bank of Industry, the Development Bank of Nigeria, and the Central Bank have rolled out some concessional facilities, but these remain a fraction of what is required. Industry estimates put Nigeria’s renewable energy financing gap at a staggering N11.4 trillion.

    The shortfall is felt most sharply by early-stage developers and mini-grid operators working in rural communities. They often face high interest rates (running at high as 19 – 23%), short loan maturities (mostly below three years), rigid collateral demands, and repayment schedules that make long-term project viability difficult. Consumer finance schemes targeting bottom-of-the-pyramid households and women-led businesses exist, but they are either too small or difficult to access.

    One major problem is that Nigerian lenders, from commercial banks to microfinance institutions, often lack the capital, and the appetite to issue large or long-term naira loans for renewable energy projects. Many financiers remain unfamiliar with the business models, viewing them as risky.

    That perception is compounded by the profile of many developers who are mostly young, undercapitalized firms with limited collateral. Policy shifts and regulatory delays also add uncertainty, making banks even more cautious.

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    Projects aimed at last-mile rural electrification tend to deliver low returns in the short term, which is unattractive to profit-driven lenders unless external de-risking tools are in place. And with Nigeria’s renewable energy market still relatively young, the lack of proven, bankable projects only deepens investor hesitation.

    A further gap exists in financial sector expertise. Many lenders have no in-house staff trained in renewable energy project finance. Data that captures the distinct needs of women entrepreneurs or poor consumers is rare, leading to products that inadvertently exclude them.

    Some projects have bucked the trend. In 2023, four solar hybrid mini-grids in Osun State, developed through a public-private partnership between Aradel Renewables Limited and Concerto, brought reliable power to 1,200 homes. The scheme relied on blended finance, community engagement, and risk-sharing – demonstrating what is possible with the right mix of support.

    In 2025, off-grid solar giant, Sun King secured the naira equivalent of $80 million in local-currency loans for product deployment – a rare large-scale deal in the sector. Meanwhile, the African Climate Foundation and Konexa combined technical support with guarantees to unlock over $34 million in capital for Nigeria’s first private renewable energy trading platform.

    Yet such examples remain exceptions rather than the norm.

    Nigeria must act decisively. One proposed solution is a “Nigeria Renewable Energy Credit Facility” a Central Bank-led fund pooling capital from public, donor, and pension fund sources to provide long-term, low-interest naira loans. Incentives for banks, such as regulatory mandates or preferential reserve ratios for renewable lending, could also push capital toward the sector.

    Expanding credit guarantee schemes, introducing partial risk guarantees, and combining donor grants with private capital through blended finance models could further de-risk investments. Dedicated “Gender and BoP Renewable Bonds” could earmark funds for women-led enterprises and community cooperatives, while pay-as-you-go models could help rural consumers afford clean power.

    Capacity-building will be key. Financial institutions need training in renewable energy risk assessment and business models, while market aggregation platforms could pool smaller projects into portfolios that attract bigger investors. Policymakers are also urged to fast-track frameworks for green bonds and securitization, collect gender-disaggregated financing data, and offer tax breaks or interest subsidies for inclusive projects.

    Experts stress that intentional gender inclusion is not just a fairness issue but a growth driver. A minimum share of concessional and blended finance could be directed to women-led projects. Partnerships with civil society could help women entrepreneurs build investment readiness, increasing their success rates and community impact.

    Unlocking naira-based concessional finance will not be easy, but the rewards are significant. Done right, it could close Nigeria’s energy access gap, create jobs, stimulate sustainable economic growth, and position the country as a leader in Africa’s clean energy revolution. The question now is whether policymakers and financiers are willing to take bold, targeted action – before the opportunity slips away.

    •Clement Chisom John,

    Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria, Abuja.