Gen. Rabe Abubakar's Death in Captivity: Why Nigeria Must Adopt Guerrilla Warfare to Defeat Banditry

The tragic death of retired Major General Rabe Abubakar in a Katsina bandits’ camp has sparked a fierce national debate on Nigeria's counter-insurgency failures, with prominent security analysts calling for a total departure from traditional military tactics.

The Katsina State Government confirmed over the weekend that the former Director of Defence Information succumbed to health complications from diabetes and hypertension while in captivity. This followed a distressing viral video showing the General and his wife pleading for their lives.

Reacting to the development, renowned analyst Dr. Kazeem Bello warned that the tragic outcome is a symptom of a deeper systemic delusion within Nigeria’s leadership.

"It obviously appears that these bandits, kidnappers, and terrorists are in a full-scale war with Nigeria, while the government is practically still in a dreaming mode," Dr. Bello stated. "To these rogues, this is a total war. To the government, these are human issues that are negotiable. We cannot continue to hear about government negotiating with these rogues while they become more invincible, deadly, and unapologetic."

The Failure of Traditional Warfare

Dr. Bello argued that both kinetic and non-kinetic military efforts have flatlined because the adversary is playing by a fundamentally different economic and operational rulebook. To the bandits, abduction and terror represent a "long-life means of livelihood and economic independence," guarded by a strict doctrine of violent deterrence.

"For how long will it take the government to understand that this is never a war you fight using traditional military warfare or one where negotiations can secure peace?" Bello questioned.

The Proffered Solution: "Fight Fire with Fire"

To break the cycle, Dr. Bello is advocating for an immediate National Defense Bill to back an official declaration of Total War. His primary strategy calls for the deployment of specialized, asymmetrical forces.

Citing the Yoruba proverb, “Ona ina ni a man ran si Ina” (You only send a thunderstorm to fight a thunderstorm), Dr. Bello proposed the creation of a specialized Guerrilla Warfare Crack Team.

"This must be a special squad trained in hard guerrilla tactics and infected with the same daring mindset as these criminals," he explained. "By stationing these trained guerrilla fighters directly in the forests, they will keep the bandits too busy fighting for survival to launch raids into our cities and towns."

Navigating the Risks

While acknowledging that casualties are inevitable in a total emergency war declaration, Dr. Bello emphasized that proper equipment and genuine state backing would minimize losses. However, he issued a stern warning regarding the long-term management of such specialized squads:

"To sponsor guerrilla tactics requires a considerable amount of discipline, decisive leadership, and complete freedom from political interference. The danger is that if unmonitored, successful guerrilla forces can turn against the state. Immediately they achieve their goals, structured military formations must step in to replace them and prevent a counter-insurgency situation."

Dr. Bello concluded that since terrorists, drug warlords, and separatist gangs successfully use guerrilla tactics to instill fear and pain, the Nigerian state has no choice but to adopt the exact same expedient strategy to take them out permanently.