Crime & SecurityNewsNigeriaLawmaker Pushes for Foreign Mercenaries as Fight Against Terror Groups Intensifies

A Nigerian lawmaker has reignited the debate on foreign intervention in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency and banditry by urging the federal government to consider hiring foreign mercenaries. This proposal comes amid ongoing frustration over the continued violence by the terror groups.

The lawmaker representing the Chibok/Domboa/Gwoza federal constituency of Borno State, Ahmed Jaha, made the suggestion on Tuesday following the killing of one Onumegbu Ifeanyi, a civil servant in Abia, by a naval officer in Rivers state. He argued that the Nigerian military needed a new strategy and that foreign fighters could provide valuable assistance.

Nigeria has a long history of battling extremist groups in the northeast. The Boko Haram insurgency, which began in 2009, has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions.

Jaha said Nigeria’s security forces have failed to end violent attacks across the country despite the government’s huge allocation to security. Between 2015 and 2023, he said, more than N19 trillion was budgeted for security, yet the conflict persists.

“We are going to organise a movement to present a position paper on the attempt to bring mercenaries to bring an end to insecurity since our security agencies have failed Nigerians,” said the lawmaker on Tuesday.

This is not the first time the idea of mercenaries has been raised. In 2021, calls for foreign support were made by Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno state. Previously, under President Goodluck Jonathan, foreign contractors were utilised, but President Muhammadu Buhari terminated the contracts upon taking office, calling it “disgraceful.”