The fundamental responsibility of government, the world over, is the protection of life and property of her citizens.
The welfare and economic advancement of the citizens are also important but life naturally comes first.
The relationship between government and the governed is anchored on the Theory of Social Contract, as propounded by a Dutch Jurist; Hugo Grotius, in 1625 BC.
Though the theory was later interpreted differently by the trio of Thomas Hobbes in 1651, John Locke in 1689 and Jean-Jacques Rousseau in 1762, the underlying idea remained similar.
The theory is based on the idea of a contract agreement between the individual and the State, under which the power of the Sovereign is justified by a hypothetical social contract in which the people agree to obey in all matters in return for a guarantee of peace and security which they lacked in the war-like ‘state of nature’, posited to exist before the contract was made.
Quite a number of people in government in Africa are either not conversant or, at best, conscious of this all important theory of social contract.
In the United States of America, Britain, France, Russia or any part of Europe, the death of a citizen means a lot to the government.
We have not forgotten the heat generated not long ago by the death of an American soldier in Niger Republic.
A black American soldier; Sgt LA David Johnson, had died in Niger Republic but Americans raised a lot of criticism against President Donald Trump over the manner in which he extended his condolences to the bereaved family of Johnson.
But here in Nigeria, even if a hundred soldiers die, it would be taken for granted that they enlisted in the Army only for them to die.
Countries that honour the theory of social contract, go extra miles to protect the lives and property of their citizens. They place high premium on the security, welfare, justice and peace of their citizens.
Such countries, I mean their governments, spend huge resources on intelligence and counter-intelligence, just to make sure the safety of their citizens are not compromised.
According to reports trending in the public domain, both the United States of America and the United Kingdom have published on their respective Websites intelligence warning their nationals in Nigeria of high risk of attacks by Boko Haram insurgents on crowded targets in Abuja from now and all through the Christmas period.
The USA made her warning public on Wednesday 29th November, 2017 while the UK published hers on Friday 1st December, 2017.
As put separately by the two governments, their citizens are strongly advised to lay low and avoid public places in Abuja during the period in question.
Such places include; markets, shopping malls, hotels restaurants, bars and worship centres.
The report further stated that states like Bauchi, Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa and Yobe might suffer some degree of vulnerability this season.
Nigeria, ordinarily-speaking, should be grateful to both USA and UK for coming up with this quality of intelligence.
It, therefore, behoves the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to act fast to make sure the evil machination of the Boko Haram is nipped in the bud.
Very importantly, the main opposition Party in the country; the Peoples’ Democratic Party, will have her elective National Convention at Abuja on the 9th and 10th of this month.
Should any thing untoward happen to them, it would be logically and morally concluded that it is either the APC government that plotted it or the government deliberately failed to protect the people.
