While our Authorities Investigate….

By Halima Sogbesan

The deplorable state of security in the country has got me asking questions, just like numerous other Nigerians. It is almost impossible not to ask questions, when Boko Haram has become a household name and we all live in fear, watching out for when next they might strike, where the next target is, and who will be affected.  Since the sad episode of insecurity begun and gained ground in Nigeria, I have yearned for someone to open their mouth and blurt out the solutions to these problems. Sometimes I find myself turning the pages of newspapers for expert opinion on Nigeria’s security challenges and when this mess may end. However in my attempt to find answers, I have noticed a trend and this lies with our Police force and other security outlets. With every terrorist attack or strike, they “commence investigation”. These are investigations that never end or produce clear discoveries.

Since many of the attacks in Nigeria have been attributed to Boko Haram, it is probably time to tag statistics to the number of attacks the group has spearheaded. The United States of America’s 2011 Country Reports on Terrorism states that in 2010, the year Boko Haram gained notoriety nationwide, they successfully conducted 31 attacks. However, in 2011, the number rose tremendously to 136. It is important to note here that our authorities commenced investigation on every one of those attacks. We can assume that they did since they were ordered by Mr President to fish out the perpetrators of the terrorist acts. However, we never get feedback from the Police on their investigation. While they work towards “investigating”, some other dreadful acts occur; death tolls number more than a hundred with the injured battling to live and other people continue to live in perpetual fear.

It is 2012 and the attacks this year have not decreased in any way. In fact, we now have more to worry about. While we deal with Boko Haram, we mourn and worry about those students that were killed in Mubi by people we don’t know, since investigations are still on. We also mourn with the families of the students who were lynched in Aluu for allegedly stealing laptops and computers. We cannot conclude because up till this point the police investigation is still producing different results and pointing fingers at different people daily.

I was very quick to blame the Nigerian Police force for being incompetent but then the US Country Report on Terrorism 2011 again says that, though Nigerian laws were modelled on international standards, including the United Nations guidelines, these laws do not clearly define the police or security agency that would serve as the lead agency to investigate suspected terrorist crimes.

So, while I wait for the discoveries from the police investigations, I pacify myself with stories other people have made up about these groups and why they do what they do. I listen to those arguments again and again and believe that this episode will be over soon. I would, at least, believe that someday a headline somewhere will announce that the police force has concluded investigations on a case and then we can start turning the country around from there.