By Anamati Inyang, November 19, 2025
Former presidential candidate Gbenga Hashim has issued a stark warning over what he described as the Federal Government’s diminishing grip on security across Northern Nigeria, following a new wave of deadly terrorist attacks in Kwara and Kebbi States.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Hashim said the latest incidents including the killing of two security operatives in Rogun Village, Kpada District of Patigi LGA in Kwara State demonstrate that terrorists now operate across the region “without fear of the state.”
According to reports, terrorists invaded a police outpost in Rogun on Sunday night, engaging officers in a lengthy gun battle before eventually overrunning the facility.
The assault comes just days after 25 schoolgirls were abducted and a vice principal murdered in Kebbi State, along with the killing of a senior Customs officer in Bagudo LGA.
“These coordinated attacks are evidence of a nation slipping toward total collapse,” Hashim said.
“From Niger to Zamfara, Kaduna to Plateau, Bauchi to Kebbi, and now Kwara, terrorists dictate the rhythm of life in too many communities. The Federal Government has lost control.”
He described the Patigi attack as particularly alarming, noting that the Middle Belt corridor had previously been considered relatively stable.
Hashim warned that the incident signals a dangerous expansion of terrorist operations and reflects “a total failure of intelligence and policing.”
“What we are witnessing is a quiet surrender of northern Nigeria to non state actors. Rural communities are under siege. Schools are unsafe. Police posts have become battle zones. This is not governance this is abandonment,” he said.
He also referenced reports of a serving military general ambushed after terrorists allegedly intercepted his communication, insisting the development shows insurgents now possess “advanced capability and extraordinary daring.”
“If terrorists can attack a police outpost in Kwara and kill officers without repercussions, what hope do villagers have If 25 girls can be taken in Kebbi without immediate rescue, what remains of the meaning of government” he asked.
Hashim stressed that meaningful state authority is now mostly confined to state capitals, while “vast rural territories have fallen under the shadow of armed groups.”
“Outside state capitals, sovereignty is collapsing. Villages are ruled by fear, by bandits, by terrorists. The silence from those in power is complicity. Many communities now pay taxes to terrorists,” he lamented.
He extended condolences to families affected by the Kwara and Kebbi attacks and called for an urgent national response, including a radical restructuring of Nigeria’s security framework.
“Unless drastic steps are taken now, Nigeria risks tumbling into a new and uncontrollable phase of disintegration,” he warned.
