EXCLUSIVE: Nigerian Soldiers Usually Abandon Their Motorcycles, Flee Whenever Terrorists Attack Kwara Community — Emir

The Emir of Yashikira in the Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara State, His Royal Highness, Amb (Dr) Alhaji Umar Sariki Usman, Sabikpassi II, has accused military personnel deployed to his community of abandoning their posts and fleeing during terrorist attacks.

Speaking during an exclusive interview with SaharaReporters on Monday afternoon, the monarch expressed deep frustration over the inability of the Nigerian military to confront terrorists who have repeatedly invaded his domain.

He lamented that despite government assurances, no substantial reinforcement had been made to secure the community. Instead, he said, the burden of protection now rests on poorly equipped local vigilantes.

“We are yet to see the deployment of more security forces as promised by the government. They have visited the areas and they have gone back to their own camps. We are now relying on our local vigilante. My vigilante from the district, they are everywhere securing the community. Of course, if the terrorists launch a fresh attack now, we cannot rely on ourselves. The few military that are here are not solid enough to confront them,” the Emir said.

According to him, the soldiers stationed in the area are inexperienced and ill-equipped, often resorting to retreating whenever gunmen strike.

“In fact, they have been with us for long, but in most cases they cannot do much because they are not properly equipped. If you see them, you will see that they are young boys that are just from the training. They cannot go into any serious fighting. That is the reason they always drop their motorcycles and run away whenever the terrorists launch an attack,” he added.

The Emir’s revelation paints a bleak picture of the escalating insecurity in northern Kwara, where rural communities have come under frequent attacks by armed terrorists who kill, abduct, and loot with impunity.

SaharaReporters had in April reported the emergence of the Mahmuda terror group in parts of North Central Nigeria, where they have been wreaking havoc on rural communities across Kwara and Niger states.

The group operates around the expansive Kainji Lake National Park (KLNP), a vast ungoverned terrain shared by Kwara, Niger, and parts of Kebbi State. Communities affected in Kwara include Kemaanji, Tenebo, Baabete, Nuku, and Nanu in Kaiama Local Government Area, and several villages within the Yashikira district of Baruteen Local Government Area. 

In Niger State, Babana and Wawa Districts in Borgu Local Government Area were also overtaken by the terror group.

In one of their deadliest recent operations, militants from the Mahmuda group attacked a local vigilante unit in Kemanji, killing over 15 members and villagers.

“They call themselves Mahmuda group. Their leader in a voice note is threatening all the communities. They kill and kidnap victims and also demand ransom,” a source familiar with the group’s activities told SaharaReporters.

Another source said the growing insecurity across Nigeria, especially the occupation of ungoverned spaces by armed groups, poses grave threats to national security and rural livelihoods.

“The surge of insecurity in Nigeria has been a source of concern to the citizenry because of its destructive factor to livelihood, and unfortunately, new militant groups continue to emerge and occupy the ungoverned spaces in the country,” the source said.

“With the Kainji Lake National Park left unguarded, the loggers, fishermen, and hunter groups take the opportunity and start enjoying the common good of the citizens for their personal gain.”

He explained how economic actors like timber merchants eventually struck a deal with the militants: “At the beginning, there was a clash between the loggers and the militants as well as the vigilantes, but the loggers negotiated with the militants, and the loggers gained access to the forest to harvest trees without any hitches and this as well serves as the biggest opportunity for the militants to make money through the logging activities.”