It started as a frivolity and we handled it with kid gloves thinking it was just a one-off matter; it’s not our thing, we are not that kind of nation, we don’t do terrorism especially for the very fact that we are a ‘very’ religious country. Alas, it has lived with us for the last decade and counting and looking like a marriage made in hell.

It’s over a decade now that this epidemic called Boko Haram enveloped the country especially the North-East region and has never looked back since then; destroying lives and property with ease. The case of the Chibok girls easily comes to mind where hundreds of schoolgirls were abducted from their school premises and despite the seemingly great effort made by the government to rescue them, some of them are still missing and probably married to the hierarchy of the sect.

Their parents have taken it as their fate and you won’t blame them as their cries fell on deaf ears with a certain Leah Sharibu, a name that rings a bell now for the very wrong reasons. Not that others weren’t important but hers was a case of a Christian who despite the alleged release of most of the girls was never released and there was rumour that she was married to the ring leader- I don’t know his name.

From their first attack up till this moment, it has been politics after politics as the then ruling party claimed to be winning the war but winning is a continuous tense which means they were doing their best which they believed would yield dividend but never did until their ouster in 2015. Then, came the regime of the day which promised that immediately they assume power, the insurgence would be over.

Nigerians have not slept with their two eyes closed since they assumed power contrary to their promises and bogus manifestos. Instead of diminishing returns, we are going to a magnificent crescendo as almost every part of the country has witnessed one violent act or the other; from Boko Haram in the North-East to the reign of bandits in the North-West down to Fulani herdsmen activities where killing people is their favourite hobby.

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Benue massacre orchestrated by the killer-herdsmen was disheartening to say the least where some families lost everyone; is it the Jos killings? Should we mention Southern Kaduna where it became a ritual that it must happen on a daily basis? What of Zamfara, Yobe, Niger, Kwara, and the mother of all of them-Borno?

 Yet, the kind of reaction coming from the government of the day has been nothing but nonchalant.

Katsina which happens to be the state of the President and Commander in Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has had its fair share of killings and destructions recently but the kidnapping of the over 300 schoolboys of Kankara, a couple of days back, has actually left a sour taste in the mouth of every caring Nigerian. The question remains, who’s next and when will all these end?

It is no joke and we can’t ignore the fact that our security personnel are no longer up to the task or so they want us to believe. The people at the seat of power are equally not up to task in keeping the country safe. People are beginning to flee the country to seek refuge in other countries like Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

When is Nigeria going to be safe again in reality? I am not talking about rhetoric or political gimmicks. We need peace and adequate security so that we can sleep with our two eyes closed.