By Sahabi Malami Uzairu
As expected, Senator Shehu Umar Buba (APC, Bauchi South), the Chairman of the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence, has reacted to my open letter to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmad Tinubu, GCON, over some of the controversial activities of the lawmaker.
The senator’s reaction didn’t betray his exposure, competence, and intellect. Senator Buba deployed “data boys” to go on a rampage, cursing and chasing shadows in the most illiterate manner. These “data boys” also unleashed unprovoked attacks on the Sokoto-based prominent Muslim scholar, Sheikh Murtala Asadah, who is at the forefront of exposing the manifold flaws hidden in the senator’s peace deal with Terror Kingpin Bello Turji.
Not satisfied with the propaganda waged by his “data boys” after my first article debuted, I have observed that Senator Buba has personally launched another painstaking campaign to justify his peace deal with the terrorists and his position as the Senate chair on national security through an incoherent and sloppy media campaign in some national newspapers.
Among other bogus claims, he flaunted his master’s degree in conflict resolution and was pursuing a doctoral on security studies. If Senator Buba’s output at the Senate is anything to go by, it won’t then be wrong to conclude that the Senator acquired his certificates through mercenaries. His activities inside the National Assembly and outside of it betray his weird claims.
His claims that the peace deal is recording successes, leading to the release of scores of kidnap victims in the North-West, were further refuted last week by the families of the victims, who categorically told BBC Hausa on Friday, August 29, 2025, that they paid N2 million ransom each to get their loved ones released from the bandits’ custody.
The lawmaker laboriously tried to explain that the peace deal with the bandits is a non-kinetic approach to solving the problem. As expected, Senator Buba only succeeded in exposing his compound ignorance. No serious country adopts a non-kinetic approach to deal with murderous criminals who are commercially motivated, like Bello Turji and his gangs. Bello Turji and his gangs have no ideological or political motive that requires non-kinetic measures to deal with them.
It is worth mentioning here that contrary to Mr Buba’s claims, banditry is pure criminality, not farmers-herders clash. It is on record that victims of Turji and his gangs are both Fulani and Hausa; therefore, only an ineffectual buffoon can dismiss it as a Hausa-Fulani war or Herders-Farmers clashes. The bandits are the most notorious cattle rustlers in Nigeria. Their victims are the Fulani.
Mr President, it is expedient to mention here that Senator Buba has picked the most poorly competent clerics — such as the Musa Yusuf Asadus-Sunnah (Musa Makanike) — who speak on everything under the sun from his pulpit in Kaduna. Like a content creator desperately bent on trending and getting more likes, Senator Buba’s associate, who is leading the peace deal, discusses Kannywood, Soccer Premier League, politics, security, diplomacy, and cryptocurrency, even though he knows near nothing about these issues.
While I am not in any way rejecting reconciliation, a noble concept in Islam, it is expedient to refer to the conditions attached to it as enumerated in the “Shurudud Tawbah” in Matn Akhdari by Imam Abu Yazid Abdurrahman bin Muhammad Al-Akhdari. The conditions for reconciliation in Islam include a sincere intention for Allah’s sake, adherence to justice, a genuine commitment to resolving issues, acknowledging one’s fault, and being willing to meet in the middle for the sake of harmony within the community, among other requirements. Bello Turji and his murderous gangs don’t qualify for any of these. He was never in conflict with any community. He and his gangs just took up arms against the country and embarked on a murderous rampage without any justification.
The most potent damage this character and his co-travellers cause to Islam. Due to their compound ignorance, these so-called clerics are also destroying the security institution, making us a laughing stock among the security and intelligence community, both in Nigeria and outside the country. The conclusion among the security and intelligence community, the issue of security has been reduced to all comers’ affairs.
Your Excellency, it is worth noting that Senator Buba’s emergence as a Senate Chair on National Security and Intelligence has created ripples in the sector due to his gross incompetence and inexperience. The lawmaker capitalised on his relationship with the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to clinch the top position at the National Assembly. What is obtained now is the total misrepresentation of the hardworking NSA, as well as creating friction between the NSA and other critical stakeholders. His colleagues at the National Assembly look down on him as a first-grade novice.
More worrisome is the fact that most security agencies have decided—albeit rightly — to water down intelligence reports they share with Senator Buba’s committee for obvious purposes. These agencies are said to be sharing only security briefs that are in the public domain to avert breaches. This makes the hitherto all-important Senate committee comatose under Mr Buba.
Mr Buba’s position as a Nigerian senator has failed to change the prism many Nigerians used to view him. To many, he is allegedly being like a bandit’s representative in government. His past relationship with bandit groups and the infamous Tukur Mamu— the alleged bandit negotiator now facing trial — is legendary. It was surprising that despite all this, he still found his way to the hallowed chamber of the Senate overseeing national security and intelligence. It is high time that the senator draws a line between personal interest and national security matters.
It was on record that Senator Buba had carved a niche for himself in betraying those who helped him. A recent case in point is the Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria (SCSN). It was the same council that came out boldly — to the chagrin of all —to defend Senator Buba from the terrorism sponsorship allegations levelled against him by Bauchi State Governor Abdulkadir Bala Mohammed.
It will be recalled that Governor Bala wrote an elaborate petition to the Directorate of State Services (DSS), detailing how Mr Buba was linked to and sponsoring banditry ravaging some states in Northern Nigeria. In return for its support, Senator Buba has divided the Sharia council in so many areas and paints them black in the eyes of the NSA despite their historic contribution and role played in ensuring Asiwaju’s emergence during the primaries and coordination during the campaign. Mr Buba’s efforts in destroying the council include using Senator Abdulaziz Yari’s generosity for self-promotion and building his PDP-ulama empire.
It was reliably confirmed that after the release of the first part of this article, some concerned clerics met with Mr Buba in Kano recently, drawing his attention to the dangers explained in the article. They told him categorically that he was riding on a tiger’s back and would not necessarily know when he would end up on its belly. The clerics, it was learned, were unanimous in telling that he’s the easiest prey to be sacrificed in this dangerous security debacle. Some of the clerics were bold enough to tell him how the peace deal committee is dominated by particular sects, estranging others.
Many observers are not totally appalled by Senator Buba’s romance with bandits — a development known among security circles for a very long time. The senator’s massive investments in many mining fields across the North may not be unconnected to the latest ploy to give them a soft landing despite their burgeoning atrocities to continue providing security cover to his mining interests. This reason may be why, despite the media hype, his peace deal has not in any way helped in de-escalating the conflicts — as the terrorists continue to launch murderous raids on villages — maiming and killing innocent civilians.
It is imperative to draw the attention of Mr President, the NSA, and Senate President Godswill Akpabio to the dangerous trend of Mr Buba’s activities. It is better to nip a problem in the bud than to allow it to fester and snowball into a monster that can’t be tamed. With Mr President’s magnanimous decision to create a ministry for livestock development, it’s imperative for Senate President Akpabio to deploy Mr Buba to that committee for optimum utility.
Sir, national security issues are too important to be allowed to be toyed with by some unscrupulous elements, not even when the country is fighting terrorism on many fronts.
Mr President, if Senator Buba would be allowed to use federal resources to give a soft landing to Terror Kingpin Bello Turji, then why is the Federal Government, Chief of Defence Staff, among others celebrating the jailing of pro-Biafra activist Simon Ekpa by a Finnish court? Isn’t this a hypocrisy and double standards? With this, it is better to release IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu and shut down all Nigerian prisons and release the inmates. Your Excellency, you can as well close all the courts in the country and dismiss the judges. Justice is not longer needed in the country that forgives a murderous terrorist like Bello Turji.
Mr Uzairu writes from Sokoto, Sokoto State.
