Former presidential candidate, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has warned that the Federal Government is steadily losing operational control over security in northern Nigeria, following a string of deadly attacks in Kwara and Kebbi states.

In a statement released to journalists in Kaduna on Wednesday, Olawepo-Hashim said the latest incidents, including the killing of two security operatives in Rogun Village, Kpada District of Patigi LGA in Kwara State, show that terrorists now operate across the northern region “without fear of the state.”

According to him, gunmen stormed a police outpost in Rogun on Sunday night, engaging security operatives in a prolonged firefight before eventually overpowering them.

The assault came just days after 25 schoolgirls were abducted, a vice principal murdered in Kebbi State, and a senior Customs officer killed in Bagudo LGA.

“These coordinated attacks are evidence of a nation sliding toward total collapse,” he said.

“From Niger to Zamfara, Kaduna to Plateau, Bauchi to Kebbi, and now Kwara, terrorists determine the rhythm of life in too many communities. The Federal Government has lost control.”

Olawepo-Hashim described the Patigi attack as particularly troubling, noting that the Middle Belt corridor had long been considered relatively stable.

The spread of attacks into this area, he warned, signals a dangerous expansion of militant activity and a “total failure of intelligence and policing.”

He added that northern communities are “under siege,” with rural areas increasingly engulfed by criminal elements while state authority remains largely confined to major urban centres.

“What we are witnessing is a quiet surrender of northern Nigeria to non-state actors. Schools are unsafe, police posts have become battlefields. This is not governance, this is abandonment,” he lamented.

Referencing recent reports that a serving military general was ambushed after terrorists allegedly intercepted his communication, he insisted the development shows that insurgents now possess advanced capabilities and unprecedented boldness.

“If terrorists can attack a police outpost in Kwara and kill officers without consequence, what hope is left for villagers? If 25 girls can be taken in Kebbi without immediate rescue, what does government still mean?” he asked.

Olawepo-Hashim said many rural dwellers are now forced to pay taxes to armed groups, warning that sovereignty in large swathes of the North has collapsed.

He extended his condolences to families affected by the Kwara and Kebbi tragedies and called for an urgent national response, including a radical overhaul of Nigeria’s security architecture.

“Unless drastic measures are taken immediately, Nigeria risks slipping into a new and uncontrollable phase of disintegration,” he cautioned.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended his planned trips to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, in response to the escalating security crises in parts of the country, including the abduction of schoolgirls in Kebbi State and an armed attack on worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State.

The President was expected to depart Abuja on Wednesday for the 20th G20 Leaders’ Summit in South Africa and later attend the 7th AU–EU Summit in Angola.

However, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu has put both engagements on hold pending full security briefings.

In reaction to the Kwara State government’s request for federal support, President Tinubu has ordered the deployment of additional security personnel to Eruku and the wider Ekiti Local Government Area to prevent further attacks.

He also directed the police to immediately pursue the gunmen responsible for the assault on Christ Apostolic Church members.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has been dispatched to Kebbi State to visit the families of the abducted students and receive ground-level assessments from security agencies and local authorities.

The President is now awaiting Shettima’s report, as well as briefings from the police and the Department of State Services (DSS) on both incidents.

The statement emphasised Tinubu’s renewed order to security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue the kidnapped schoolgirls and ensure their safe return.