PDP chieftain urges Northern leaders to take responsibility for insecurity

File Copy: A former presidential candidate and founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim

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Presidential aspirant and Peoples Democratic Party chieftain, Dr Gbenga Hashim, has urged Northern political, traditional, and social elites to take responsibility for what he described as the region’s escalating security collapse.

He also welcomed the appointment of General Christopher Musa (retd.) as Minister of Defence, insisting that the new role must translate into “practical results, not symbolism.”

The PUNCH Online reported that Musa, whose nomination by President Bola Tinubu followed the exit of his predecessor, Abubakar Badaru, had earlier appeared before the Senate for screening.

The Red Chamber confirmed him as the new Defence Minister, and he took the oath of office on Thursday at the State House, Abuja.

In a statement released in Kaduna on Sunday, Hashim said he watched Musa’s Senate screening and was convinced the nominee demonstrated sincerity and clarity on how to confront Nigeria’s security challenges.

“I watched General Musa’s Senate clearance session. He sounded like someone genuinely committed to Nigeria. I hope he receives the full executive support needed to succeed in this critical assignment,” he said.

Hashim, however, warned that Nigerians and international security watchers had grown weary of promises without action, stressing that the country had reached a point where citizens demanded immediate, measurable interventions to end killings, kidnappings, and the expanding activities of extremist groups in the North.

“This is not the season for symbolism. This is the season for action. Nigerians want to see immediate steps. This appointment must not become another publicity stunt. We want to see policies, programmes, and results,” he cautioned.

He urged the executive and the National Assembly to fast-track the legal framework for state and local government policing, saying no country battling complex violent extremism could rely solely on federal security structures.

According to him, sustainable reforms were impossible without building strong, community-based security institutions.

He also argued that the North must confront internal governance failures that have enabled extremist networks to recruit young people across the region.

“That extremists are finding recruits in their thousands is not accidental. It is the product of deep poverty caused by decades of governance failure at state and local government levels.

“While the Sahel crisis has contributed, poor local governance has compounded the problem,” he said.

Hashim contrasted the prevailing insecurity and leadership crisis with what he described as the disciplined and integrity-driven political culture of the First Republic.

“In the days of Sir Ahmadu Bello, Aminu Kano, Joseph Tarka, and Sir Kashim Ibrahim, the North was safer, more united, and governed with honesty and discipline.

“Today, too many of our leaders live like oil sheikhs in the midst of mass poverty,” he lamented.

He said the region urgently needed a moral and political reset and called for a new generation of leaders committed to accountability and public good.

“It is time for the North to replace leaders who live like oil sheikhs amidst poverty and continue to hold onto power through ethnic and religious manipulation,” Hashim added.

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