THE sound of gun fire in the hallowed precincts of the High Court in Ihima, Kogi State is the latest instance in a long string of incidents highlighting the fact that security in Nigeria is lax.Last Thursday, a band of 12 armed robbers stormed the court where the trial of a robbery suspect, Abdulrazak Nasiru, was being held. In the ensuing melee, the court registrar was wounded and the on-duty Prisons warden was gunned down as the robbers freed the suspect and fled the scene. This incident has a sad but sobering side to it. While the incident may be a twisted reminiscence of a real-life cowboy television series, it is simultaneously a testimony of the depths to which security in Nigeria has plunged. It is a sad reminder of the exacerbating trend of insecurity in the country and its deadly consequences. The courts were perhaps the last of a series of institutions that have suffered at the hands of men of the underworld. Apart from audacious raids on private residences, churches and businesses, armed robbers also frequently storm banks, offices, schools, and even hospitals. This daring act of storming a court in session is a disquieting development for the country, one which must be tackled head-on. In recent times, Nigeria has come under severe global spotlight, not least over her inability to address the challenges posed by terrorism and insecurity in general. Her ill-preparedness cost lives and property; it also costs her already fragile reputation, harsh criticism both from home and abroad. The assault on the judicial institution is likely to draw further angst. If the trend continues without check, the target of making the country one of the top twenty economies in the world by 2020 will remain a tall order. The investment climate will not thrive in an insecure environment and potential investors will avoid the country. The Kogi State incident is indeed another wake-up call to the relevant agencies, especially the Nigeria Police and the Prisons Service, to review their security procedures. The incident highlights the lackadaisical approach to court security and is a cry for all concerned to firm up their security processes especially during the transfer and trial of cases involving criminal elements in the society. It is clear that it is necessary to increase the strength of the security manpower detailed to the courts during the arraignment of suspected criminals. The incident provides an opportunity for Nigeria to sit up as far as security is concerned. Calls for an assessment of the security needs of Nigeria's court premises around the country are in order. The combustible combination of proliferation of arms and inactive security networks and processes must also be critically addressed. For too long Nigeria has not taken a holistic approach to resolving its security issues. We urge the Government to infuse a robust security component in any socio-economic development agenda the government wishes to prosecute. The fact that armed gangs can plan and successfully penetrate a state institution unchallenged is an affront to polite society. It smacks of the mid- stages of anarchy and hence must be dealt with promptly and decisively. The unregulated movement of small arms in the country must be addressed too. The high volume of illegal arms in circulation remains a cause for concern. According to The National Task Force to Combat Illegal Importation of Goods, Small Arms, Ammunition and Light Weapons (NATFORCE), there are over eight million illegal weapons in West Africa, and over 70 percent of these arms are in Nigeria. The interception of shipments of illegal arms at the country's ports has gone someway to highlighting the problem; however there is a need for more proactive action on the part of the security agencies. As for weapons already in circulation, it is not unusual for some countries to announce amnesties for the submission of dangerous weapons. In 2005 and 2006, the British Government announced knife amnesties to reduce the level of knife crime in the country. We call for a revisit of the largely reactive, slow approach to security to more preventive measures because the above cases have revealed that the country's intelligence community and the security networks are underutilized or outright dysfunctional. Hence, we recommend that apart from open declaration that the Police and other security agencies will fight back crime of all categories, government should holistically tackle insecurity headlong. Government must find lasting solutions to prevent the incident in the court from re-occurring elsewhere in the country. The courts are the upholders of justice. The protection of the courts and judicial personnel is critical to the dispensation of justice.
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