Nigeria’s current national security policies, designed to curb terrorism and insecurity, have been vehemently criticised by legal and security experts for abandoning constitutional safeguards, deepening human suffering, and actively creating new categories of victims.
This warning was delivered by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Prof. Yusuf Ali, in his keynote address at the Gavel International Annual Lecture and Awards 2025.
Delivering a paper titled, “The Impact of National Security Policies on Vulnerable Populations: A Human Rights Perspective,” Prof. Ali warned that the nation’s counter-terrorism and law enforcement strategies have drifted perilously from their constitutional foundations, resulting in widespread violations against the very citizens they were meant to shield.
Prof. Ali stated emphatically that the vulnerable, including the poor, women, children, and Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, have become unintended, yet consistent, casualties of the government’s efforts to combat terrorism, banditry, and separatist agitation.
“The reality is that many of our security measures have turned citizens into victims. We have created a system where the people we are supposed to protect are being displaced, detained, or deprived of dignity under the guise of national security,” he declared.
The Senior Advocate stressed that national security cannot be pursued at the expense of human security. He urged policymakers to adopt a people-centred approach, where human dignity forms the bedrock of every security framework.
“True security cannot be achieved by force alone. It requires the protection of rights, economic empowerment, and the strengthening of democratic institutions.
“Where the state fails to uphold the rule of law or meet basic needs, insecurity will persist regardless of the number of guns or troops deployed,” he argued.
Citing the acute humanitarian crises in the North-East and Middle Belt, Prof. Ali lamented that millions of displaced Nigerians face dehumanising conditions, exposed to hunger, disease, and abuse.
He pointed to the absence of accountability in security operations as a key factor fostering impunity among armed forces and police units, leading to a profound erosion of public trust.
Prof. Ali specifically criticised provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, which allow for prolonged detention without trial. He warned that such measures contradict both the spirit of the Constitution and international conventions ratified by Nigeria.
“Laws designed to fight terrorism should not themselves become tools of terror. We cannot detain people indefinitely or silence dissent in the name of protecting the state. The Constitution was made for times of peace and crisis alike,” he cautioned.
The legal luminary called for mandatory human rights training within the military, police, and intelligence services, alongside stronger legislative checks on executive power.
He advocated for inclusive policymaking that actively incorporates the voices of affected communities, such as IDPs, women’s groups, and traditional institutions, stressing that lasting peace is intrinsically linked to community trust and participation.
He concluded his address with a reminder that the legitimacy of any security policy hinges on its ability to protect, not punish, citizens.
“Security must never be an excuse for injustice. When citizens lose faith in the fairness of the state, the battle for national security is already lost,” he declared.
Adding a security perspective, retired Major General (Dr.) James Alilu Atagura identified corruption and the chronic absence of an effective system of punishment and reward as the core drivers of Nigeria’s pervasive insecurity.
He lamented the collapse of justice and accountability, noting that widespread impunity emboldens criminality across the political landscape.
“Can anyone genuinely go to court and expect justice without bias?” he asked.
“We see election malpractice, certificate forgery, and corruption go unpunished. Governors finish eight years and vanish when the EFCC comes knocking, while their predecessors remain in court 15 years later. Without justice, society reverts to a state of nature,” he added.
Major General Atagura also questioned the extensive deployment of the military for internal security duties, arguing that the army has been overstretched beyond its constitutional role, which should primarily be the responsibility of the police.
“The military should not be embedded among civilians. When soldiers act outside their defined scope, they create more problems,” he warned.
He insisted that insecurity is a symptom, not the disease, and will persist unless Nigeria addresses root causes such as poverty, unemployment, and institutional decay.
“Even if Boko Haram is defeated today, another group will rise tomorrow because the root causes remain unaddressed,” he said, calling for a swift, certain, and consistent enforcement of laws.
Contributing to the structural debate, Pastor Dele Adesina, SAN, described Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution as a fundamentally flawed document that actively undermines true federalism and effective governance.
He cited scholars who have variously called the document a fraud and an illogical document.
Adesina noted that despite Nigeria being a supposed federation, many of the constitution’s provisions are unitary, particularly concerning policing.
He pointed to Section 214, which mandates only one police force, and Section 215, which restricts governors’ operational control over Commissioners of Police.
“How can governors be chief security officers when they lack control over law enforcement?” he queried. He urged constitutional reform to correct these fundamental structural defects, insisting that no true federation operates a single, centralised police force.
Earlier, the Founder of Gavel International, Mustapha Adekunle Ogunsakin, said the lecture was conceived to draw urgent attention to the worsening security crisis and the government’s constitutional duty to protect its citizens.
He lamented the political class’s indifference, urging leaders to rise above partisanship and unite against insecurity, which he rooted in poor governance, not religion.
