Former Abia Speaker and APC House of Representatives candidate, Rt. Hon. Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji, says President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s combined use of military operations and community-based programmes is beginning to “reclaim Nigeria’s peace” after years of insecurity.
Orji argued that the administration since May 2023 has refused to treat force and prevention as competing options, and has instead pursued both simultaneously.
According to him, the kinetic component is the “hard edge of state power” involving the deployment of the Armed Forces, police, and intelligence agencies to directly confront criminal networks. He cited sustained operations against terrorist enclaves in the Northeast and raids on bandit camps in Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger states.
He also pointed to targeted rescues of kidnapped Nigerians, improved highway policing, aerial surveillance, and stronger intelligence coordination among the DSS, NIA, police and military, which he said had helped security agencies move from reaction to anticipation.
In an article titled “A Steady Hand in a Storm: President Tinubu’s Dual Strategy for Reclaiming Nigeria’s Peace,” Orji argued that the non-kinetic component tackles the root causes of insecurity through dialogue, economic empowerment, education, deradicalisation and rehabilitation.
“Peace held by soldiers alone is fragile. Peace owned by communities lasts,” he wrote. “One clears the ground, the other plants something better in its place.”
The former Speaker said the administration’s early directives included empowering the service chiefs, improving inter-agency coordination and strengthening funding and morale for frontline troops without political interference.
On the non-kinetic side, he said traditional rulers, religious leaders and civil society were being brought into security discussions because lasting peace cannot be decreed from Abuja alone.
He listed agricultural support, access to credit and rural infrastructure as part of efforts to address the economic desperation that can make young people vulnerable to recruitment by criminal groups.
Orji also defended deradicalisation and rehabilitation programmes for repentant fighters and victims of violent extremism, describing them as strategic tools rather than signs of weakness.
“This is not weakness. It is strategy. It reduces the pool of foot soldiers available to violent groups and gives communities a path back to normalcy,” he stated.
He said the dual approach was also being applied to communal conflicts through mediation, land-use dialogue and livelihood alternatives designed to address grievances before they turn violent.
In the Northwest, Orji said kinetic operations had helped reopen markets and grazing routes, while dialogue with farmer and herder associations was helping reduce reprisal attacks and establish early-warning mechanisms.
He said the approach also extended beyond Nigeria’s borders through ECOWAS and bilateral security partnerships, noting that criminal networks and traffickers do not respect national boundaries.
The APC chieftain further highlighted the use of hotspot mapping, drone surveillance and community reporting apps as part of what he described as a more data-driven approach to security, allowing resources to be directed toward emerging threats rather than only areas where attacks have already occurred.
Orji argued that security has direct economic implications, saying improved stability would strengthen confidence in agriculture, mining, logistics and other productive sectors.
“Jobs follow confidence,” he wrote.
He also stressed the importance of citizens becoming active partners in security through neighbourhood watches, tip lines and town-hall engagements.
“Citizens are not spectators,” he stated.
The former Speaker said what distinguishes the administration’s approach is patience and continuity, arguing that security gains are cumulative rather than theatrical and that institutions need time to learn, adapt and consolidate progress.
He also pointed to legal and constitutional measures, including improved equipment procurement and support for ongoing discussions around state policing, saying Nigeria’s size requires a layered security architecture.
While defending the administration’s direction, Orji acknowledged that the challenge remains.
“No honest assessment will claim the job is finished. Insecurity is hydra-headed and will test any government. But the direction is clear and the method is sound,” he said.
He called for continuity in the strategy, urging government to sustain pressure on criminal groups while deepening investments in vulnerable communities.
Orji said the ultimate objective should go beyond simply reducing attacks to creating conditions in which insecurity becomes increasingly difficult to sustain.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has set a template: firmness without recklessness, and compassion without naivety. In a nation as complex as ours, that balance is leadership,” Orji concluded.
