Sa’adiyyah Adebisi Hassan has once again taken to her Facebook handle to criticise Nigeria’s persistent security failures, arguing that terrorists operating across the country are far from invisible and that the real problem is a system that has chosen to remain ineffective.
In a strongly worded commentary titled “Terrorists Aren’t Invisible, Our System Is Just Useless on Purpose,” she questioned why groups that openly broadcast their activities continue to evade arrest despite their digital footprints.
Hassan noted that terrorist groups frequently go live online, publish videos, and recruit publicly, yet remain untouched. She attributed this to factors such as underfunded or demoralised security agencies, corruption and collusion within institutions, the preference of political leaders for propaganda over genuine reform, and a lack of coordination among intelligence bodies.
She added that, despite Nigeria’s mandatory SIM registration regime, loopholes persist due to the use of fake National Identification Numbers, weak verification processes, and the widespread sale of pre-registered SIM cards.
She stressed that terrorists take advantage of technology, but insisted they are “not ghosts,” adding that the true problem is the absence of political will. According to her, there are practical measures that any serious government would have already implemented to track and contain terrorist networks.
She highlighted the need for strict SIM and device identity management through proper verification systems and a robust national database linking SIM cards to verified identities and device histories.
Hassan further called for real-time intelligence integration from telecommunications companies, including call data, IP logs and tower locations, to be routed into a centralised system. She argued that Nigeria needs a unified cyber and signals intelligence centre rather than fragmented departments working independently.
She also urged the government to establish enforceable agreements with major tech platforms, VPN services and satellite internet providers such as Starlink to ensure quick access to data linked to terrorist activities.
She said such agreements should allow authorities to freeze content for evidence, capture device and IP details instantly, and trigger automated alerts to security agencies when terror-linked accounts go live.
Hassan proposed the creation of national device and IMEI watchlists to track phones associated with terror suspects. Once flagged, any attempt by such devices to connect to a cell tower would generate an alert and help security agencies pinpoint locations, regardless of SIM changes or VPN use.
She concluded that Nigeria must begin holding security institutions accountable through measurable results. She questioned how many terror-linked accounts are identified each month, how many are traced to physical addresses and how many arrests or operations follow.
If those figures remain low, she argued, the issue is not technology providers but human failings driven by laziness, compromise or incompetence.
