Tinubu Exposes Obasanjo Over Boko Haram
The Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication to President Bola Tinubu, Sunday Dare, has responded to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, urging him to acknowledge past lapses that allowed terrorism to gain a foothold in Nigeria.
Dare called on Obasanjo to support ongoing security initiatives instead of criticising the current administration.
In a social media post on Sunday, Dare warned that Obasanjo’s comments risk misrepresenting the realities on the ground and undermining public confidence in the government’s efforts to combat terrorism.
Obasanjo, speaking at a Christmas Carol in Jos, Plateau State, accused the Tinubu administration of being incapable of protecting Nigerians and said citizens have the right to seek intervention from the international community.
He said, “We Nigerians are being killed, and our government seems to be incapable of protecting us.”
The former president also condemned the government’s strategy of negotiating with terrorists, adding, “We are part of the world community, and if our government cannot do it, we have the right to call on the international community to do for us what our government cannot do for us.”
In response, Dare stated that if Obasanjo genuinely wanted to contribute, he should first acknowledge that extremist groups established their initial foothold during his civilian presidency.
He urged the former president to leverage his influence and networks to support Nigeria’s fight against terrorism, as he has done for other countries.
Dare further emphasized that Obasanjo should refrain from disparaging an administration actively working on multiple fronts, including economic turnaround, security provision, and critical infrastructure development.
He clarified that those killing Nigerians, raiding villages, abducting civilians, destroying infrastructure, and challenging state authority are terrorists, regardless of whether they operate under a foreign flag or none at all.
Dare highlighted that Nigeria faces a complex, multilayered terrorist ecosystem, including internationally designated groups, ISIS- and al-Qaeda-linked networks across the Sahel, violent extremists posing as bandits, cross-border cells exploiting porous frontiers, and ideological insurgents entrenched in ungoverned areas.
He emphasised: “Let’s call them what they all are: terrorists.”
He further noted that Boko Haram’s ideological foundations and early cells were incubated during Obasanjo’s civilian presidency, eventually evolving into a violent insurgency and a regional extremist franchise aligned with global jihadist movements.
He said, “It is historical fact that the ideological foundations and early cells of Boko Haram were incubated during Obasanjo’s civilian presidency. While they recruited, indoctrinated, built camps, and flaunted authority, the state failed to act decisively.
“What began as a preventable extremist sect transformed into: A violent insurgency, a cross-border terrorist franchise, and a regional menace aligned with global jihadist movements.
“For the leader under whom the first seeds of terrorism were allowed to germinate to now issue public lectures is not just ironic, it is reckless.”
Dare said President Tinubu is confronting terrorism through modernised military operations, intelligence-driven missions, territorial recovery, restoration of governance, community engagement programmes, and counter-radicalisation initiatives.
He added that Nigeria will continue collaborating with allies, including the United States, but will neither outsource its internal security nor compromise its sovereignty.
Dare warned that public criticism from former leaders undermines national morale and emboldens terrorists, insisting that Obasanjo should provide constructive support rather than rhetoric that weakens ongoing counterterrorism efforts.
