Democracy Day: Tinubu declares no mercy for terrorists, bandits

President Bola Tinubu on Friday issued a stern warning to terrorists, bandits and kidnappers operating across the country, declaring that those who refuse to surrender would face the full force of the Nigerian state.

Speaking during his Democracy Day address to the nation, Tinubu said his administration would continue to intensify military operations against criminal groups while keeping a limited window open for those willing to lay down their arms.

“To bandits, kidnappers, and sponsors of terror: Surrender or face the full force of the Nigerian State. These windows of surrender will not remain open forever. No mercy will be shown to those who trade in the blood of Nigerians,” the President said.

Tinubu disclosed that his administration had declared a security emergency and approved the recruitment of more than 50,000 police officers and thousands of military personnel to strengthen the country’s security architecture.

He also revealed that the 2026 budget allocated N5.41 trillion to defence and security, describing it as the largest security expenditure in Nigeria’s history.

Highlighting gains recorded by security agencies, the President said terror-related deaths had fallen by 81 per cent since 2015, while more than 13,000 terrorists had been neutralised in the past year.

According to him, Nigerian forces recently degraded an ISWAP command centre in Arege, Borno State, as part of ongoing efforts to dismantle terrorist networks.

Tinubu, however, stressed that the government remained committed to rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for repentant fighters, noting that more than 124,000 terrorists and their dependants had surrendered through Operation Safe Corridor since 2023.

The President urged Nigerians to remain united in the fight against insecurity, insisting that criminals should not be associated with any ethnic or religious group.

“Crime has no ethnicity,” he said, expressing confidence that Nigeria would ultimately overcome terrorism and banditry.