Insecurity: Let Tinubu, Defence Minister Travel Without Escorts — APM

The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has challenged President Bola Tinubu and Minister of Defence Christopher Musa to travel by road without armed security escorts, saying such a move would demonstrate the government’s confidence in its claim that insecurity has improved.

The party made the challenge in a statement issued in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, on Saturday. It accused the Tinubu administration of being disconnected from the security challenges facing ordinary Nigerians.

The position followed comments by Musa that Nigeria’s security situation had improved. The opposition party argued that the claim was inconsistent with Nigeria’s ranking in the 2026 Global Terrorism Index, where it said the country was ranked the fourth most insecure country globally, compared with sixth position in the 2025 index.

The party said Nigerians continued to face killings, kidnappings, displacement, banditry and other violent crimes in different parts of the country.

APM also cited alleged figures on the scale of insecurity, claiming that more than 600,000 Nigerians had been killed and about 2.2 million abducted over the past three years. It also referred to mass abductions in Niger State and ransom payments allegedly running into billions of naira.

The party argued that armed escorts for senior officials contrasted sharply with ordinary citizens, who travel roads exposed to attacks and kidnapping.

It therefore challenged Tinubu, Musa and other senior officials to travel without armed protection if they believed the country had become significantly safer.

According to the party, the challenge was intended to highlight what it described as the gap between official claims about security improvements and the realities experienced by citizens.

APM called for a comprehensive strategy to address terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other violent crimes, arguing that the government had not developed an effective enough response to the crisis.

The opposition party urged Nigerians to support its presidential candidate, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, in the 2027 election, describing him as capable of offering a different approach to national security.

APM further said insecurity required stronger and more accountable leadership, better coordination among security agencies and policies capable of restoring national public confidence.