The apex pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has blamed the persistence of banditry, kidnapping and terrorism across Nigeria on powerful cabals operating both within and outside government, accusing them of sabotaging efforts to tackle insecurity and other national challenges.

In a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, the group said successive government interventions across key sectors had failed largely because those entrusted with implementing reforms were complicit in undermining them.

Afenifere alleged that entrenched interests in high places had consistently frustrated policies aimed at sanitising the system and improving the well-being of Nigerians, warning that insecurity had now become the most dangerous manifestation of such sabotage.

“Be it electricity, water, energy, education, agriculture, the economy and now insecurity, the seeming failure of government strategies in these sectors is traceable to the corrupt tendencies of cabals in high places who deliberately undermine efforts meant to strengthen governance and enhance citizens’ welfare,” the statement said.

The group expressed concern over the escalation of kidnapping, cattle rustling and banditry, acts it described as bordering on genocide and territorial expansionism.

It noted that while such crimes were once largely confined to the North-East and North-West, they have now spread rapidly to other parts of the country.

Afenifere lamented that Yorubaland, previously regarded as relatively safe, has become increasingly vulnerable, with rising cases of abductions and killings reported in parts of Kogi, Kwara, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states, as well as Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa areas of Oyo State, and Yewa and Ijebu Waterside in Ogun State.

“At a time when many Nigerians are already struggling to make ends meet, safety has now become the first consideration before any thought of livelihood,” Afenifere said, adding that fear and insecurity have disrupted social and economic life across communities.

The organisation cited past instances of alleged sabotage to underscore its position, recalling how the late former Minister of Power, Chief Bola Ige, was frustrated in his bid to reform the electricity sector before being redeployed.

It also questioned the fate of billions of naira spent annually on refinery turn-around maintenance, road repairs and security, despite worsening infrastructure and rising insecurity.

“For several years, the largest portion of our national budget has gone to security and defence, yet insecurity continues to escalate. The question remains: where did the money go?” the group asked.

Afenifere further alleged that the insecurity crisis would have been resolved long ago “but for the complicity of those charged with ending it,” accusing some leaders of shielding bandits, advocating negotiation over prosecution, or even rewarding terrorists with amnesty and incentives.

The group also warned of a growing agenda to displace indigenous communities from their ancestral lands, linking frequent attacks, levies and abductions in rural areas to armed herders and foreign interests seeking access to land and mineral resources.

“These activities involve collaborators within communities as well as actors in high places, both within and outside the country,” it alleged.

To stem the tide, Afenifere called for urgent structural reforms, including youth re-orientation, de-radicalisation programmes, a restructured security architecture, effective monitoring of ungoverned spaces, improved training and welfare for security personnel, deployment of modern equipment and the immediate establishment of state police.

While acknowledging that constitutional amendments are required for state policing, Ajayi suggested that a presidential directive could, in the interim, decentralise existing police structures to allow states and communities greater operational control.

The group also referenced recent remarks by the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, that President Bola Tinubu had authorised expanded security deployments, improved intelligence coordination and robust investigations into attacks on religious communities.

“For these assurances to translate into reality,” Afenifere said, “there is an urgent need to strengthen intelligence gathering, cleanse the security agencies of saboteurs, weaken entrenched cabals, empower communities to expose collaborators and accelerate the restructuring of the country.”