Former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase, on Wednesday revealed that Boko Haram operatives were, at one point, listed on the Nigerian Army recruitment roster, warning that such breaches are severely undermining the nation’s security framework.
Speaking at a special plenary session convened to evaluate the country’s security challenges, Wase noted that the former Chairman of the House Committee on Defence, Muktar Betara, could corroborate his claim.
“This exposes serious weaknesses in our recruitment procedures, which have allowed individuals with criminal affiliations to infiltrate critical security institutions,” Wase said.
Speaking emotionally, Wase, who lost both a brother and a cousin to terrorist attacks, said the breach helps explain why armed groups continue to operate with impunity in parts of Nigeria. He added that insecurity has reached such a level that even his surviving younger brother pleaded for help to be relocated from their community.
He said, “My brother, former chairman of defense, and my very good friend, Betara, will bear with me that we have moments in when in the process of recruitment, we found in the list names of criminals. Boko Haram members were found in the list of Army.
“There has to be a thorough way of ensuring that when we are recruiting, those of us who are politicians should recommend people of good character and integrity.
“That’s the only way we can solve this problem. You find a criminal in the system, and before you know it, whatever you do, you cannot have the problem resolved. So we must change the system and way of our recruitment.
“Yes, as politicians, it’s good to recommend. This is what we are here for. But when you are recommending, please recommend people of integrity, people that will meet standards and ensure that they give the best access to our country.”
Wase also warned that part of the reason Nigeria’s security crisis persists is that some individuals profit from the disorder, allowing criminal groups to move in convoys and operate unchecked.
He criticised the politicisation of indigeneship and citizenship as a source of national division and called for constitutional reforms to address the issue.
Highlighting the gravity of the situation, Wase noted that kidnapping has become routine, with approximately N5 billion reportedly paid in ransom in a single year, and over 30,000 lives lost to Boko Haram-related attacks over time.
He urged legislators to adopt a comprehensive approach, stressing that the scale of insecurity in Nigeria is far worse than widely perceived and demands immediate, coordinated action.