Understandable outrage has followed a report that Borno Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum, has said that the security situation under President Buhari is markedly better than it was before the Buhari years.

The outrage is understandable because the claim is coming barely two weeks after more than 40 farmers were slaughtered in cold blood in Zabarmari – a small village community in Koshebe town, Borno. The governor may, however, be on to something.

In his words, “There were daily attacks, bomb blasts in many parts of Maiduguri, the most populated part of the state but all of these have stopped under Buhari. These are the records and no one can dispute these records.” He is not wrong.

The memory of the spate of terrorist attacks during the Goodluck Jonathan years is still fresh in Nigeria’s collective memory. Sundays were days of caution, with people lining up to be searched to prevent explosives from getting snuck into the congregation. News of bomb blasts in markets, in polices post, and places of worship was commonplace. And April 14, 2014, will remain unforgettable as the day over 250 schools girls were kidnapped from their school beds in Chibok, many never to return.

The Governor’s claim is all good if the absence of bomb blasts is the only litmus test on how bad insecurity is under the current administration, but it cannot be, because Nigerians deserve better than ‘you are not killed as much under my watch, so be grateful.’

While there may not be bomb blasts happening all over Northern Nigeria, bandits run riot all over the region. Former Executive Secretary of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Usman Yusuf, said last week on The Morning show on AriseTV that far from better, the security situation has gotten worse in the North. 

“People are being killed every day all across the North. In all 3 geopolitical regions,”  he said in a teary voice, “The bandits are brazen now, they go everywhere. There is a village in Zamfara, Kanoma, the bandits rolled in on a Friday, killed 5 people and carted away with 40.”

He claims there is a media blackout of the extent of insecurity in the North.

Governor Zulum made his claim while addressing the elders of Arewa Consultative Forum. It is not unlikely that he is playing a script. It remains baffling, however, why he would do that? To what end?

It is also possible the governor is counting his losses and holding on to hope, something his people desperately need in these dark times. But false hope is more harmful than bitter truth.

As Yusuf said, “(all the atrocities happening in the North are) because the North is silent.”

It will serve the governor better if he keeps the heat on so the president does not slack in his duty any more than he already has. Praise singing the president because bombs are not going off every other day will hurt his people in the long run, as bandits continue to get emboldened by the day.

Ado Aminu

Ado Aminu writes to expand human stories. When not reading, writing or arguing about how the patriarchy has and continues to ruin everything, you’ll find him daydreaming about his next cup of coffee. You can follow him on Twitter @PettyMuse.