Our village people have won this round
FG is pouring money into security, but the results are almost nonexistent
Good morning, Big Brains. It feels weird to think that 2027 is still two years away. This is another gentle reminder that you need to get your voter's card if you haven’t already gotten it.
- Margaret
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Reading time ~ 5 mins
Let’s get into today’s edition:
The Nigerian government might be the weapon fashioned against Benue
Trump wants to expand his travel ban list
The Big Deal
The Nigerian government might be the weapon fashioned against Benue
The whole country is still mourning the tragedy that claimed about 200 lives in Benue on Friday, June 13, but experts are already sharing theories that suggest that this might not be the last gruesome attack in this state.
Public affairs analyst Nick Agule explained to Channels Television that Nigeria’s entire security architecture is responsible for the incessant killings in Benue.
According to Agule, security has two aspects: to prevent attacks using intelligence and to respond effectively when attacks happen. Unfortunately, neither seems to be happening.
Agule also asked the question that’s been on the mind of thousands of Nigerians, “Why is the government not going after those killing Nigerians, but is quick to teargas citizens who are weeping, wailing, and lamenting about the situation?”
He also added that if the government doesn’t figure out a way to reshape Nigeria’s security architecture completely, armed groups will continue to move freely within Nigeria and attack poor citizens without consequence.
Why is this a big deal?
As disturbing as it sounds, these attacks carried out in Benue state by suspected herders have been going on for decades, yet the headlines still look the same.
The Tinubu-led administration continues to invest heavily in defence and security. In 2025 alone, ₦6.57 trillion was budgeted for security; we are well into the middle of the year, and Nigerians can’t exactly say they’ve seen the result of the heavy budget. What we see are headlines that make us lean more towards Agule’s weak security architecture theory.
In 2024, for instance, a new terrorist group called Lukarawa snuck in through Nigeria’s weak borders and started terrorising the Northwest region. Even though Lukarawa’s entry into Nigeria started making headlines in 2024, some reports suggest they’ve been there for over six years.
In 2018, Sokoto residents suspected something was off about a group of herders (now known as the Lukarawa terrorist group) operating in the Marake and Tsauni Forest and reported their activities to the police. If Nigerian authorities deployed any form of intelligence gathering in their approach to the situation, it did not show. The Nigerian Police Force got involved, launched an investigation and eventually told the people of Sokoto that there was no reason to worry about Lukarawa because they were just herders. Now, these “herders” have been confirmed to be terrorists who are now taking lives in the same Sokoto state and other areas in Nigeria.
Even though over 6,896 people have been killed in Benue and at least 2,630 killed in Plateau since President Tinubu was sworn in, the president has not shown enough commitment towards ending the crises.
When terrorists continue to get away with murder and all sorts of violence, it suggests that there is a deeper security weakness that needs to be addressed, except in Nigeria’s case, it’s no longer a suggestion; it’s now as clear as day that our security system needs fixing.
Trump wants to expand his travel ban list
We hate to say we told you so, but when it comes to the chances of Nigeria being affected by the travel ban flying around in the United States (U.S.), we kind of called it.
On June 4, U.S. President Donald Trump placed a travel ban on 12 countries for “security reasons.” Nigeria managed to stay off that list, but our luck seems to be running out.
According to an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters, Trump’s administration is now considering 36 more countries, including Nigeria, for potential travel restrictions. If we don't meet certain "benchmarks and requirements" within the next 60 days, the door to America might start closing for us, too.
In the cable, the U.S. government explained several reasons why it is considering the ban, including poor passport security, weak or unreliable identity verification systems, and some countries' refusal to accept back their citizens who have overstayed their U.S. visas. It also mentioned cases where nationals from some of these countries were linked to terrorism or showed hostility toward the U.S. or Jewish communities.
We’re not sure what Nigeria’s offence is because the memo just lumped all 36 countries into the same category, including Ghana, Ethiopia, Cameroon, and Uganda. Whatever the reason may be, the message is clear — no country on that list is safe from Trump’s crackdown.
There’s no way to tell for sure how this would end, but if Trump did it once in 2020, he can definitely do it again in 2025.
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This Week’s Big Question
On a scale of one to ten, how happy are you to be a Nigerian and why?
Faizah’s response - “I'm being generous when I say 2. 1 for the character building, 1 out of gratitude, because I’m shocked I’m still alive. Happiness disappeared when generators got more respect than doctors.”
You can also share your response here, and if it’s as interesting as Faizah’s, we’ll feature it in the next edition.
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Play catch up
Benue is bleeding
On Friday, June 13, a group of suspected herdsmen attacked Yelewata and Daudu communities in the Guma Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State, killing about 200 people, including children.