President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has branded all armed groups, including Fulani militias, bandits, violent cults and gun-wielding non-state actors operating outside state authority, as terrorists.
The President disclosed this during the presentation of the N58.46 trillion 2026 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly on Friday.
He described the move as a new counterterrorism doctrine that classifies all armed groups operating outside state authority as terrorists, including bandits, militias, armed gangs and their political or community enablers.
The President said the new security overhaul represents a “holistic redesign” of Nigeria’s security framework, anchored on unified command, intelligence coordination, community stability and counter-insurgency operations.
He explained that the decision would halt threats to the country’s corporate survival and heightened anxiety among the people.
“Henceforth, and under this new architecture, any armed group or gun-wielding non-state actors operating outside state authority will be regarded as terrorists,” he said.
According to him, these include “bandits, militias, armed gangs, criminal networks with weapons, armed robbers, violent cult groups, forest-based armed collectives, and foreign-linked mercenaries.”
He added that groups or individuals carrying out violence for “political, ethnic, financial, or sectarian objectives” would also fall under the terrorist classification.
Recall that Tinubu presented a N58.46 trillion 2026 budget, with defence and security receiving the highest allocation of N5.41 trillion.
Meanwhile, Nigerians have demanded results from Tinubu’s government in its efforts to tackle insecurity.
The Nigeria Union of Teachers has recently threatened to withdraw its services if security is not guaranteed amid a spate of kidnappings.
