Following a devastating insurgent attack in Borno State in mid-March 2026, former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar issued a sharp condemnation of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration, asserting that the government has lost the moral authority to lead Nigeria.
Atiku’s statement came in response to a massacre in the northeast that resulted in dozens of civilian casualties and the displacement of several communities, an event he characterized as a grim reminder of the deteriorating security architecture under the current leadership.
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He argued that the primary responsibility of any sovereign government is the protection of lives and property, and that the recurring nature of these mass killings in Borno and across the Middle Belt proves the administration is failing in its most fundamental constitutional duty.
Atiku criticized the government’s approach to national security, describing it as reactionary rather than proactive, and accused the administration of prioritizing political optics over the grueling reality of frontline combat and intelligence gathering.
He maintained that a leadership that watches helplessly as its citizens are slaughtered in their homes and farms cannot claim the moral right to demand sacrifices or loyalty from the populace.
The former Vice President specifically highlighted that the “Renewed Hope” agenda has transitioned into a cycle of despair for families in the north, where agriculture has been crippled by the constant threat of banditry and terrorism.
He further noted that the administration’s inability to secure the borders or flush out known terror hideouts suggests a lack of political will or a fundamental competence deficit that undermines its legitimacy.
The critique also touched upon the economic dimension of the security crisis, with Atiku linking the high cost of food to the unsafe conditions in Nigeria’s primary farming belts like Borno.
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He stated that the government’s claims of economic reform are hollow if farmers cannot access their land without the fear of being kidnapped or murdered.
By failing to provide a secure environment for productivity, Atiku argued, the Tinubu administration is effectively presiding over a state of managed chaos.
He concluded that until the government can demonstrably secure the Nigerian people, its directives and policy pronouncements carry little moral weight, as the social contract between the state and the citizen has been fundamentally breached by the persistent bloodshed.
Source : Nairametrics
