Retired General dies in bandit captivity and we are still spending N5.4 trillion on security

The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has called for a comprehensive probe of defence expenditure and security votes across the country after retired Major General Rabe Abubakar died in bandits' captivity yesterday. This is a man who spent his entire career defending Nigeria, yet he ended up in the hands of criminals. If a decorated military officer is not safe, what hope do ordinary Nigerians have?

CISLAC Executive Director Auwal Musa Rafsanjani put it bluntly in a statement on Sunday — the Federal Government allocated N5.41 trillion to defence and security in the 2026 budget, the largest security allocation in our history, yet kidnappings and banditry continue to rise. An Amnesty International report cited by Rafsanjani shows at least 1,100 people were abducted between January and April 2026 in northern Nigeria alone. Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Defence Bello Mohammed Matawalle reportedly said only God can end insecurity. Rafsanjani rightly asked: did Nigerians appoint ministers to give excuses or to deliver results?

Let me be clear — the Minister of Defence General Christopher Musa rtd blaming global conflicts for procurement delays does not explain how bandits and terrorists are better armed than our military. Something is fundamentally broken when we spend trillions and still lose generals to criminals. How many more high-profile deaths will it take before someone is held accountable for this failure?