Former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor (retd.), has raised fresh concerns about the growing link between politics and insecurity in the country.
He said some political actors have been taking advantage of the fragile security situation for their own gain, adding that the issues troubling the nation cannot be traced to one single cause.
Irabor spoke during a televised interview on Monday, where he carefully broke down what he described as the “layers” behind the violence in many communities.
His remarks come shortly after a presidential aide, Daniel Bwala, disclosed that the Federal Government was preparing to reveal the identities of individuals accused of financing terrorism.
During the conversation, Irabor warned that trying to classify every violent incident under one label only worsens public misunderstanding.
According to him, Nigeria is currently battling different shades of insecurity at the same time, and they each operate with separate intentions.
He explained that while terrorist groups operate based on ideology, there are also criminals targeting specific religious communities, gangs pushing people out of their homes to claim territory, and individuals driven purely by economic gain.
“You can’t hold people for their views, but the reality is that our issues in terms of security challenges are multifaceted,” he said.
He stressed that these actors do not share the same goals, and that lumping everything together creates the wrong picture. “If you lump the entire thing into one, the analysis would be wrong,” he noted.
Irabor also addressed the argument that insecurity in Nigeria is entirely political.
He said that while there are politicians who exploit violent situations, it would be incorrect to assume that every attack has a political undertone.
“Those who say it is political would be lumping all the issues together, and that is not correct,” he added.
However, he acknowledged that some political figures deliberately use insecurity to push narratives that benefit them.
He noted that some do so to convince the public they possess better solutions, while others may instigate unrest to portray the government as ineffective.
“That does not mean some politicians have not taken advantage of the insecurity to perhaps gain some sort of leverage,” he said.
Irabor added that such actions only worsen an already difficult situation, as they fuel division and complicate efforts by security agencies working to stabilise communities.