ABUJA, Nigeria — The Centre for Contemporary Studies (CCS), Abuja, has thrown its weight behind calls for objective and fact-based reporting of insecurity, warning that Nigeria’s fight against crime will remain ineffective if criminal acts are judged based on the ethnicity or religion of perpetrators.
In a statement signed by its Chief Executive Officer, Yusuf Musa, and Director of Security and Strategic Studies, Capt. Kabir Aminu (Rtd.), the Centre endorsed the position of security analyst and conflict reporter Zagazola Makama, stressing that criminality should be reported truthfully regardless of the identity of those involved.
According to the organisation, the controversy surrounding the identification of a suspected attacker involved in the attempted assault on the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, underscores what it described as a growing national challenge, where some individuals support transparency only when it implicates perceived opponents but reject it when members of their own communities are involved.
The Centre argued that objective reporting should not be misconstrued as ethnic profiling, insisting that journalists and security analysts should not be intimidated into withholding credible information about the identity, affiliation or operational background of criminal suspects simply because such facts may be politically sensitive or socially uncomfortable.
CCS maintained that Nigerians have consistently demanded accurate security reporting and that such standards should apply equally to every armed criminal group, irrespective of ethnic or religious affiliation.
The organisation also commended security personnel for successfully repelling the attempted attack on NIPSS and praised their commitment to protecting strategic national institutions despite prevailing security challenges.
It further stressed that no ethnic or religious community has a monopoly on either victimhood or criminality, noting that while millions of Nigerians across different backgrounds are law-abiding citizens seeking peace and justice, criminal elements exist in various communities and should be confronted without bias.
The Centre warned that selective outrage and attempts to shield offenders through ethnic, religious or political narratives only undermine national security and frustrate efforts to achieve lasting peace.
Calling on the media, civil society organisations, community leaders and the public to uphold a single standard of justice and accountability, CCS reaffirmed its commitment to truth, fairness and equal justice under the law.
“There must be no sacred cows in the fight against insecurity. There must be no shielding of criminals. Justice must remain blind to ethnicity, religion and politics,” the statement concluded.
