By 
The Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, has expressed concern over the worsening spate of killings, abductions, and banditry across Nigeria, warning that the country is bleeding at a scale comparable to those officially at war.
In a statement on Monday, Obi condemned the recent attack in Okigwe, Imo State, which left many dead and several others missing.
He said the tragedy was yet another reminder of the “alarming insecurity reality” confronting Nigerians daily.
Obi who cited a weekend report by Amnesty International (AI), noted that the human rights body accused the Federal Government of “emboldening bandits” through its failure to protect citizens.
In the report, Amnesty documented multiple attacks in just one week, including the massacre of over 50 worshippers in a Katsina Mosque, the abduction of more than 60 people in the same state, and the killing of at least 15 farmers in Mangu, Plateau State, which displaced over 200 families.
“Amnesty International revealed that in just two years of this administration, over 10,000 Nigerians have been killed by armed groups. Instead of improving security, insecurity has worsened, with new armed gangs emerging,” Obi said.
The former Anambra governor emphasized the gravity of the crisis, pointing out that Nigeria, though not at war, has recorded civilian deaths comparable to Ukraine, a country under full-scale invasion.
He said, “In two years, Nigeria’s insecurity crisis has taken almost as many civilian lives as a country under open warfare,” he lamented.
Obi appealed to the political class to put aside politicking and petty squabbles, insisting that the first duty of government is the protection of life and property.
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