Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule has urged Nigeria’s military to deploy advanced technology and intelligence to curb escalating killings by bandits and herder-farmer clashes, which claimed 87 lives in Nasarawa in 2024.
Speaking at a security summit in Lafia on April 22, 2025, Sule emphasized drones, AI surveillance, and cyber-tracking to dismantle criminal networks, citing Israel’s 90% success rate with tech-driven counterterrorism, per Reuters. The plea follows a January attack in Doma, killing 40.
Sule, facing 2027 re-election pressures, noted Nigeria’s $10 billion security budget, per the IMF, is undermined by outdated equipment, with only 30% of military drones operational. Nasarawa’s 2.5 million residents, 60% farmers, suffer from clashes disrupting 1.2 million hectares of farmland, per the World Bank. Sule advocated for community policing and youth training, drawing on Singapore’s 0.3% crime rate, per UNODC. The summit, backed by the Nigerian Army, proposed a 5,000-strong state security force.