Military bases in Nigeria opposed by northern leaders

A number of Northern Nigerian politicians have spoken out against President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s decision to grant French, American, and Sahelian nations permission to move their military bases to Nigeria.

They warned that Nigeria was in danger if it allowed the governments of the United States and France to carry out such a move.

The letter’s intended recipients were Tinubu and the House of Representatives.

The following individuals were named as signatories to the letter: Abubakar Mohammed from CEDDERT; Kabiru Chafe, a former minister of state for petroleum resources from the Arewa Research and Development Project (ARDP); Attahiru Jega, a former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); Jibrin Ibrahim from CDD; Auwal Musa (Rafsanjani) from the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CCISLAC); and YZ Ya’u from CDD.

They asserted in the letter that the governments of France and the United States have been pressuring regional countries like Nigeria to sign new defense treaties that would permit them to reposition their forces that were expelled.

“This is because terrorism, rather than decreasing, has actually increased significantly since the US started its operations in the region,” the leaders stated.

The potential negative effects on the economy and the environment of housing foreign military bases were also voiced by them.

From an economic perspective, it is possible that the government will redirect money from more pressing sectors, like healthcare, education, and infrastructure development, to the upkeep and protection of these military outposts.

“In a nation where a large portion of the population already faces difficult circumstances, this reallocation of resources has the potential to slow economic development and worsen poverty.

Higher prices and living costs are a common consequence of hosting foreign troops, which has a disproportionate impact on the lower-income people.

From an environmental perspective, building and maintaining military bases can have a major negative impact on the surrounding area.

The agricultural communities and indigenous inhabitants suffer from these, which include soil erosion, water contamination, deforestation, and loss of biodiversity.

They went on to say that “the long-term environmental damage could further hinder economic opportunities and sustainable development.”

The letter went on to say that the existing tense relationship between France and Nigeria’s neighboring countries will become even worse with foreign military bases in the country.

Nigeria is the most strategically positioned Gulf of Guinea country, it turns out. The Nigerian government seems to have a positive attitude toward the planned defense agreement.

Nevertheless, many are concerned that if Nigeria were to sign the deal, it would have far-reaching consequences for the country’s defense and internal security.

Their statement went on to say that “manned and unmanned surveillance flights and other operations in the Sahel” were conducted out of these French and American locations.