Nigeria’s former vice-presidential candidate and founder of Baze University, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, says President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a national security emergency “has missed the point completely,” insisting that the administration’s new security plan is “a joke” that ignores the real causes of insecurity.
Speaking in an interview with ARISE News on Thursday, Baba-Ahmed said the government’s approach was misguided, wasteful and distorted by corruption.
“He has missed the point completely,”he said.
“This declaration of a state of emergency is a joke. Leave it at that.”
Rejecting the President’s plan to recruit and rapidly train thousands of new personnel, Baba-Ahmed argued that the security crisis is not caused by inadequate manpower.
“It is not about numbers. It is about reducing corruption in the war against insecurity itself,” he said.
“How much of the money budgeted for security is actually going to the war, and how much is going into 2027 elections? Once you remove that corruption, Nigeria will become secure.”
He claimed the police—if freed from political interference—could eliminate banditry swiftly:
“Remove the Nigerian armed forces. The Nigeria Police alone can wipe out insecurity in two months. Remove corruption, remove political interest, give them support, they will do it.”
Baba-Ahmed strongly criticised a proposal in the government’s policy document discouraging school construction in remote communities.
“That is deadly. That is wrong. I wish President Tinubu can hear this quickly—withdraw that point and correct it,”he said.
“In the educational world, we are fighting a war on behalf of the country. We cannot let terrorists dictate how we run Nigeria.”
He accused the government of echoing extremist narratives:
“The moment you close a school, you are opening a prison. You are opening the gates of hell. Telling people to stop building schools in remote areas is doing Boko Haram’s bidding.”
On the broader performance of the administration, Baba-Ahmed delivered one of his strongest criticisms yet:
“This government is skating on thin ice. The ice is so thin you cannot believe it. We are in a precarious situation.”
He said multiple institutions share responsibility for Nigeria’s current political leadership:
“The judiciary, please see what you’ve done. Nigerians, see what we have done to ourselves. The armed forces, see what you’ve done.”
Reflecting on the aftermath of the 2023 election, he added:
“I nearly stopped the swearing-in of this government. Up till today some elements are blaming me. Ever since a few comments I made, the APC has not recovered.”
He insisted that his warnings to Nigerians before the election were ignored:
“We were telling the people repeatedly and they wouldn’t listen. That is why we are paying a very high price.”
Baba-Ahmed urged citizens not to wait for foreign powers—especially the United States—to rescue the country.
“Nobody from any country will come and do for you what you refuse to do for yourself,”he said.
“Americans will not bomb you into development. Nigerians, wake up.”
On the values guiding his decisions, he was unsparing:
“The simple thing is: I love Nigeria. I want Nigeria to work. That is my guiding principle.”
He argued that Nigeria repeatedly allows politicians driven by personal and group interests to ascend to power:
“Nigeria should have no leaders whose entire preoccupation is re-election and personal interest.”
He called on citizens to resist electoral manipulation in the next cycle:
“Do not allow anybody to rig in 2027. They will rig, and you mean nothing to them. The Constitution means nothing, because one individual will say the way he wants it interpreted.”
Turning to education—his preferred focus—Baba-Ahmed described the values behind founding Baze University.
“Our family legacy is in education. Whenever I complain about something, I will do something about it.”
He condemned what he called widespread rule-breaking in the establishment of new institutions:
“Even if there is an education policy, they are abusing it. This government is breaking its own laws. Universities are being allowed to start in rented buildings—this is illegal.”
He accused some regulators of attempting to undermine Baze University:
“They want to fight me. They want to water down the quality. But I will say the truth—damn the consequences.”
On his educational legacy, he said:
“The certificates of graduates of all Nigerian universities should be worth their weight in gold. What I have done is lead the quality revolution.”
He highlighted innovations he introduced:
“We have biometric attendance, anonymous exam scripts, conference mics. I built an institution where I did not know 98% of the employees before they were hired.”
On his long-term impact, he said he hopes to push Nigeria toward living wages and competent leadership:
“Politically, I want truly elected leaders and living wages. Teachers and security forces must be prioritised.”
Boluwatife Enome
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