“Unveiling the Silence: The Hidden Crisis of Mass Killings in Nigeria – Insights from Olawepo-Hashim”

Former leader of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has raised concerns regarding what he termed a new surge of mass fatalities across Nigeria, cautioning that numerous occurrences are being inadequately reported and increasingly accepted as normal.

In a statement released on Sunday through his X account, Olawepo-Hashim referenced recurring assaults in Shanga Local Government Area of Kebbi State, along with other regions in the North Central area, as proof of what he termed a deteriorating security situation in the nation.

The statement expressed: “I am profoundly troubled by the new surge of mass fatalities across Nigeria, many of which remain inadequately reported.

“The ongoing assaults in Shanga Local Government Area of Kebbi State, throughout various parts of the North Central area, and in numerous other locations, continue to reveal what seems to be a broadening and persistent security failure in the nation.

“As I have repeatedly indicated, the actual extent of fatalities is being perilously underreported and increasingly accepted as routine.

“In Kebbi, recent assaults reportedly resulted in over 40 fatalities and destruction of homes, with concerns that the toll may continue to escalate. Comparable incidents weeks prior claimed additional lives. These communities seem to be subject to ongoing attacks, frequently without adequate security intervention.

“In Kwara State, coordinated assaults across Kaiama, Edu, and Ifelodun have reportedly resulted in numerous fatalities, including forest guards, yet many of these tragedies scarcely make it beyond local coverage.

“Across the North Central area, the trend is deeply concerning: Benue, Plateau, Niger, and Nasarawa states have all experienced repeated assaults, with hundreds feared dead within weeks.

“Together, these occurrences indicate a humanitarian crisis that is receiving what can be described as selective focus and dangerous quietude.

“This growing disparity between reality and global awareness is morally alarming. Mass fatalities in rural Nigeria are increasingly regarded as routine statistics rather than pressing human tragedies.

“The ongoing activities of armed groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP, alongside expanding bandit networks, underscore deeper structural failures in security coordination.

“Equally worrisome is the muted reaction from global entities such as the United Nations and the African Union, despite the gravity of these fatalities.

“This prompts challenging but essential inquiries: Why has the world become desensitized to mass fatalities in Nigeria?

“Why do Nigerian casualties no longer incite sustained global outrage?

“And how many more must perish before silence itself is deemed complicity?

“These are no longer mere rhetorical inquiries; they reflect a growing sentiment that global attention has become selective, and that Nigerian lives are increasingly undervalued in the global humanitarian landscape.

“If this persists, we risk normalizing mass death, where tragedy becomes commonplace and urgency vanishes.

“For now, the reality stands unchanged: the fatalities persist, the figures rise, and too many victims remain invisible and unrecorded.”