ATIKU : QUESTIONABLE PATRIOT

At a time when our Armed Forces are taking the fight directly to terrorist enclaves, it is both disappointing and telling to see Atiku Abubakar politicize the recent airstrikes at Jilli Market by alleging that the government is targeting civilians.

Over the weekend, the Nigerian Air Force carried out targeted, intelligence-led airstrikes on insurgent positions within and around the Jilli axis, where the market—though still geographically identifiable—has for years been overtaken and repurposed as a logistics and trading hub for terrorist elements, including BHT and ISWAP.

Let us be clear: while the location may still be referred to as “Jilli Market,” it has not functioned as a legitimate civilian marketplace in any meaningful sense. By multiple credible accounts, it has evolved into an operational node within the insurgency’s supply chain—facilitating movement, coordination, and sustenance of violent actors.

For Atiku Abubakar to ignore this context and frame a legitimate military action as an attack on civilians is not only misleading—it is reckless. It risks distorting public understanding and undermining the morale of those on the frontlines who are daily risking their lives to secure the country.

What remains difficult to reconcile is the contradiction. He consistently criticizes the government for failing to curb insecurity, yet when decisive, intelligence-driven action is taken, he is quick to condemn it. That is not principled opposition—it is opportunism.

At some point, clarity must prevail. You cannot dine with the devil and still pretend to stand with the masses.

Nigeria deserves seriousness, not selective outrage.