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By Dada Ahmed
A haunting silence, broken only by muffled sobs and the sharp call of a military bugle, settled over Maiduguri, Borno State, as mourners gathered to bury Brigadier General Oseni Braima and other soldiers who recently fell on the front lines. The solemn ceremony was not just another burial; it was a painful reminder of a war that continues to claim some of the nation’s finest.
Draped in the green-white-green, the flag-covered coffins told a story words could hardly capture,of courage, sacrifice, and a conflict that has stretched across years with no clear end in sight. The grief of families, the stiff salutes of fellow officers, and the slow lowering of caskets into the earth combined to form a deeply emotional national moment.
That moment laid bare the true that the cost of Nigeria’s prolonged battle against insurgency is one measured not just in territory lost or regained, but in lives cut short and families as well as the nation left behind to mourn them.
Beyond the bugle calls and military honours, the burial also underscores a troubling truth that the front lines of this war are no longer confined to distant battlefields but reverberate in homes, communities, and across the nation’s collective conscience.
The death of each fallen soldier raises urgent questions,not only about strategy and sustainability, but about the role ordinary Nigerians must play in confronting a crisis that has refused to fade.
It is from this sobering reality that the larger narrative unfolds,one that traces Nigeria’s long and evolving war from the shocking bombing in Abuja some years back to the entrenched battle in the North-East, and why the burden of ending it can no longer rest solely on the military.
When a bomb tore through the United Nations building in Abuja about 15 years ago, the message from insurgents was chillingly clear, meaning that Nigeria’s security crisis has entered a dangerous phase. The attack marked a turning point, transforming what began as a localized uprising into a global security concern.
Over time, the battlefield has shifted, but the underlying problem remains. From Abuja to the forests of Borno, Zamfara,Katsina,States, and parts of the North-Central Nigeria, the sad reality is that, insecurity has evolved into a complex web of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and communal violence.
It is against this backdrop that Dr. Peter Tukura’s call for Nigerians to “own the fight” against insecurity resonates with urgency.
He made the call while responding to questions from journalists on the sidelines of a press conference organised by the Igala Bassa Progressive Forum at the NUJ Press Centre in Lokoja, Kogi State, to endorse President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo for the 2027 general elections.
His position is apt and challenges the long-held belief that security is solely the responsibility of the military and intelligence agencies.
Nigeria’s heavy reliance on military force has delivered tactical gains, but not lasting peace. Insurgent groups have repeatedly shown an ability to retreat, regroup, and strike again, exploiting gaps that force alone may not be able to close.
According to Dr. Tukura, the crisis is driven largely by religious, political, and ethnic tensions with fault lines deeply embedded in Nigeria’s socio-political structure. These divisions ,he noted,have created fertile ground for extremism and criminal enterprise.
At the heart of the solution lies a simple but uncomfortable truth that,criminals and insurgents live among the people. They are known, seen, and sometimes silently tolerated,without active citizen cooperation, security agencies left to fight with no end in sight.
However, some security observers have argued that expecting citizens to step forward without guarantees is unrealistic, pointing out that trust remains the missing link.
People must be confident that information shared will be protected, that justice will be fair, and that reprisals will not follow according to critical minds keeping an eye on the security challenges confronting Nigeria.
Beyond intelligence sharing, many law abiding citizens of the country believe that the economic drivers of insecurity demand urgent attention.For instance in Zamfara State, illegal mining has become both a funding source for criminal groups and a driver of violence. Dr. Tukura warned that, if left unchecked, such activity will continue to sustain insecurity as a thriving but dangerous enterprise.
Equally pressing is the herders-farmers conflict fuelled by population pressures, environmental changes, and dwindling grazing land.
Dr. Tukura called for ranching, saying that it offers a viable path forward for Nigeria in winning the battle against farmers/herders clashes stressing the need for improved policy clarity, effective funding, and stakeholder buy-in in this regard.
Religious extremism must,one of the identifiable causes of the battle should also be tackled at its roots. This requires sustained investment in education, promotion of interfaith dialogue, religious tolerance and community-based deradicalization programmes that counter violent ideologies before they take hold.
However,a security expert, Edward Ajao, argued that a lasting solution must be multi-dimensional,combining intelligence reform, improved judicial efficiency, economic inclusion, and social cohesion,if Nigeria must win this war against insurgency.
While military force is credited for suppressing violence, but peace-loving citizens believe that it is improved governance, justice, and opportunity that can ultimately bring insurgency to the barest minimum.
Technology, too, must play a central role. Modern surveillance systems, data-driven policing, and early warning mechanisms can help authorities detect and neutralise threats before they escalate.
At the same time, community policing must be strengthened and the clarion state police must be given the needed consideration to rebuild trust and close the gap between citizens and security agencies.
Therefore, ending this war will require more than firepower. It demands a united populace, a shared national resolve, and government improve tie with the people to confront not just the symptoms of violence, but its root causes.
And as the earth closed over the graves of Brigadier General Oseni Braima and other fallen gallant soldiers, one reality stood clear, that the cost of the battle against insurgency in the North is far too high, and the responsibility for lasting change belongs to all Nigerians for the most populous black nation in the world to have the desired peace.
Dada Ahmed, a member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), publishes The Reporters.
ahmeddada008@gmail.com.
