For many Nigerians, travelling from one state to another has become more than a routine journey. It is increasingly an exercise in uncertainty, as kidnapping, armed attacks and other forms of criminality continue to threaten major highways and rural transit corridors across the country.
“For a citizen who leaves home in the morning with the expectation of returning safely, being intercepted and abducted by criminals represents a profound breach of the social contract between the state and its citizens.”
Although governments at all levels have made significant efforts to combat terrorism and other forms of insecurity through military operations, intelligence-led interventions and increased security deployments, the persistent activities of non-state armed groups and criminal syndicates continue to expose travellers to serious risks.
For a citizen who leaves home in the morning with the expectation of returning safely, being intercepted and abducted by criminals represents a profound breach of the social contract between the state and its citizens.
Across the country, parents now live with the anxiety of waiting for phone calls from children travelling between states. For many families, the fear is no longer limited to reports of attacks in distant communities. It has become a daily concern along interstate highways, in rural communities and even in areas previously regarded as relatively safe.
For the average Nigerian, a simple journey can therefore raise one fundamental question: Will I arrive safely and return home unharmed?
This atmosphere of insecurity has profound implications for citizens who need to travel for work, education, business, healthcare and family obligations. It is particularly concerning for young Nigerians participating in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme.
The NYSC Challenge
For many graduates, the NYSC programme represents an important transition from university education to professional and civic life. Young Nigerians leave their homes with enthusiasm, prepared to contribute to national development and gain valuable experience in communities outside their immediate environments.
However, the journey to orientation camps and places of primary assignment can expose corps members to significant security risks, particularly when they are posted to distant states requiring long road journeys across multiple geopolitical zones.
The vulnerability of corps members was brought into sharp focus when two passenger buses conveying prospective corps members from Ibadan to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom States were reportedly attacked by armed assailants along the Owerri-Onitsha Expressway in Imo State.
The incident generated widespread concern and highlighted the security risks associated with moving large numbers of young people across long distances during periods of heightened insecurity.
For prospective corps member Mary Joan Obasi from Lagos State, the journey can be a source of considerable anxiety.
“When I found out that I was going to travel far from home for NYSC, I was honestly scared. My parents were also very worried because of the things we hear about kidnappings and attacks on the road. They kept calling to make sure I was safe during the journey”, she said.
Similarly, Divine Favour Edward, a corps member serving in Rivers State and originally from Akwa Ibom State, believes the government should reconsider the existing deployment system during periods of heightened insecurity.
She suggested that corps members could be allowed, where necessary, to serve within their states of origin or geopolitical zones.
Such an arrangement, she argued, would reduce long-distance travel and give corps members and their families greater peace of mind.
Rethinking Deployment
These concerns raise an important policy question: should corps members be given greater flexibility to serve within their states of origin or geopolitical zones when national security conditions deteriorate?
A temporary shift towards more localized deployment could provide a practical intervention during periods of heightened insecurity.
Allowing corps members to serve closer to home would not eliminate the broader problem of insecurity, but it would substantially reduce the number of young people compelled to travel across several states and vulnerable highways merely to fulfil a national obligation.
Consider a graduate from Rivers State posted to a distant location in the northern or western part of the country. Such a posting may require many hours of road travel through unfamiliar communities, isolated highways, forested areas and locations where security coverage may be limited, or hardly exist.
“National service should promote unity and national integration, but the safety of the young people participating in the programme must remain paramount. Patriotism should not require young Nigerians to endure avoidable exposure to life-threatening situations.”
The same challenge applies to graduates travelling in the opposite direction. Collectively, these movements create a continuous nationwide flow of young people along transportation corridors that may expose them to unnecessary risks.
National service should promote unity and national integration, but the safety of the young people participating in the programme must remain paramount. Patriotism should not require young Nigerians to endure avoidable exposure to life-threatening situations.
A Wider National Security Problem
The challenges facing NYSC members are, however, only one manifestation of a much broader security crisis. Across vulnerable communities, particularly in parts of Northern and Central Nigeria, insecurity has disrupted agriculture, commerce, education and ordinary social life.
Farmers are sometimes forced to weigh the risks of travelling to their farms. Traders and transport operators worry about attacks, along major routes, while families live with the fear that relatives travelling between communities may become victims of kidnapping.
In some communities, insecurity has become so persistent that it is gradually being treated as part of everyday life — a situation that should concern every level of government.
Kidnapping for ransom is particularly destructive because its consequences extend far beyond the immediate victim. Families may be forced to sell property, borrow heavily or exhaust their savings to secure the release of abducted relatives.
The resulting financial hardship can take years to overcome, while the psychological trauma may remain long after the victim has returned home.
Drivers on the Front Line
Commercial transport operators, who spend much of their working lives on Nigeria’s highways, have first-hand experiences of the dangers confronting road users.
Anthony Okoro, a commercial bus driver operating on interstate routes, called for increased security presence along vulnerable highways.
“We need more military personnel and other security officers on the highways, especially on roads where kidnapping and other attacks are common. When we see security men on the road, it gives us confidence that someone is watching over us. We are carrying people’s lives in our vehicles, so their safety is very important to us”, he stated.
Other drivers also identified poor road infrastructure as a factor that can increase vulnerability to attacks.
For Obi James, “When the road is bad, we have no choice but to slow down. Sometimes you may even have to stop completely before you can navigate. This is dangerous because criminals can take advantage of such places. Government should fix the roads and also provide enough security on the highways so that we can travel safely and return home to our families.”
Their concerns highlight the connection between infrastructure and security. Roads in poor condition can slow vehicles, create bottlenecks and make certain sections of highways easier targets for criminals.
Strengthening Highway Security
Interstate highways connecting major economic and administrative centres require sustained, intelligence-driven security.
High-risk corridors should receive enhanced surveillance, coordinated patrols and rapid-response capabilities. Security agencies must also identify areas where criminal groups may exploit difficult terrain, dense forests or remote locations to operate or stage attacks.
However, effective highway security cannot rely solely on the visible deployment of security personnel. Intelligence gathering must be strengthened through closer collaboration between security agencies and local communities.
“Road rehabilitation must also form part of the broader security strategy. Reconstructing badly damaged highways and improving drainage, lighting and other critical infrastructure can help reduce vulnerable points along major routes.”
Residents of rural and border communities often possess valuable knowledge of local terrain, suspicious movements and emerging threats. Therefore, building trusted channels for information sharing can strengthen early-warning systems and improve response times.
Road rehabilitation must also form part of the broader security strategy. Reconstructing badly damaged highways and improving drainage, lighting and other critical infrastructure can help reduce vulnerable points along major routes.
The Role of Citizens and Transport Operators
Government intervention alone cannot solve the country’s security challenges. Citizens also have a responsibility to remain vigilant, report suspicious activities through appropriate channels and avoid spreading unverified information that could cause unnecessary panic or compromise security operations.
Transport companies can equally strengthen their safety systems by adopting standard travel protocols, monitoring security developments along major routes and maintaining reliable communication with relevant security authorities.
The objective should not merely be to respond after an attack has occurred. Prevention, early warning and rapid intervention must become central components of Nigeria’s highway security architecture.
Justice and Deterrence
Another critical component of the response is justice. Rescuing abducted citizens is essential, but the process should not end with their release. Security agencies must work with prosecutors and the judiciary to ensure that suspects are properly investigated and, where evidence establishes guilt, prosecuted and convicted in accordance with the law.
“Without sustained judicial action, criminal networks may continue to regard kidnapping and highway attacks as profitable ventures with manageable risks.”
Effective prosecution would strengthen deterrence and demonstrate that kidnapping, terrorism and other violent crimes carry serious consequences.
Without sustained judicial action, criminal networks may continue to regard kidnapping and highway attacks as profitable ventures with manageable risks.
Protecting the Future
The consequences of insecurity extend far beyond individual victims. When farmers cannot safely access their farms, agricultural production suffers. When traders and transporters fear travelling, interstate commerce is disrupted. When students and young graduates are afraid to move across the country, educational and professional opportunities are affected.
“Perhaps most importantly, persistent insecurity erodes public confidence in institutions and weakens the sense of national belonging that programmes such as the NYSC were designed to promote.”
The economic consequences can include reduced productivity, rising transportation costs, weakened investor confidence and increased pressure on food prices.
Perhaps most importantly, persistent insecurity erodes public confidence in institutions and weakens the sense of national belonging that programmes such as the NYSC were designed to promote.
Nigeria, therefore, needs a balanced approach that combines security reform, infrastructure development, intelligence gathering, community engagement and institutional accountability.
Within the NYSC framework, the government should also consider temporary or flexible deployment arrangements during periods of severe insecurity. Localized or zonal postings could reduce unnecessary exposure to dangerous transit routes while allowing the programme to continue fulfilling its national objectives.
Such reforms would not undermine the principle of national service. Rather, it would demonstrate that national development must be built around the protection and welfare of the citizens expected to drive it.
A Safer Nigeria
Nigerians deserve a country where crossing state borders does not amount to taking an unreasonable risk with one’s life.
“Security is not a privilege reserved for a few. It is fundamental to the functioning of a democratic society and to the ability of citizens to exercise their rights, pursue their livelihoods and contribute to national development.”
Parents should be able to watch their children leave home for work, education or national service without being consumed by fear. Young graduates should be able to fulfil their civic responsibilities without being exposed to avoidable dangers. Farmers, traders, drivers and other workers should be able to travel in pursuit of their livelihoods with reasonable confidence that they will return safely.
Security is not a privilege reserved for a few. It is fundamental to the functioning of a democratic society and to the ability of citizens to exercise their rights, pursue their livelihoods and contribute to national development.
The protection of lives and property must therefore remain at the centre of Nigeria’s security policies.
Reforming national service, strengthening highway security, improving road infrastructure, deepening community intelligence networks and ensuring effective prosecution of criminals are not isolated measures.
Together, they form part of a broader responsibility to build a Nigeria where movement is safe, opportunity is accessible and every citizen can return home at the end of the day.
– Ebere is an NYSC member in the Department of Public Enlightenment.