Presidential Aspirant Mohammed Hayatu-Deen Proposes Strategic Security and Economic Overhaul Following Obasanjo’s Failure Critique

ADC aspirant Mohammed Hayatu-Deen responds to Obasanjo's critique with a "firehose" plan for regional security, job creation, and agricultural consistency.

By: AXL Media

Published: May 2, 2026, 6:01 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Leadership News

The Imperative for Restoring National Security

Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, a prominent businessman and former Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), has aligned himself with former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s assessment that the Nigerian government is currently failing its primary duty: the protection of lives and property. Writing as a presidential aspirant under the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Hayatu-Deen emphasized that the normalization of kidnapping and banditry represents a national defeat. He argued that the current administration’s inability to curb these horrors necessitates a fundamental shift in governance strategy, moving beyond mere diagnosis toward the implementation of credible, large-scale solutions.

Revitalizing Regional Military Cooperation

A central pillar of Hayatu-Deen’s security strategy is the urgent restoration of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). He noted that political tensions, particularly with Niger, have severely weakened the once-robust intelligence-sharing and joint military operations between Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. To disrupt terrorist supply lines and reclaim territory in the Lake Chad Basin, Hayatu-Deen advocates for immediate diplomatic re-engagement to repair these cross-border relationships. He asserts that Nigeria cannot successfully confront domestic insurgency in isolation and must lead a coordinated regional offensive to restore stability.

Legal and Institutional Reforms Against Terrorism

To dismantle the financial incentives of criminal enterprises, Hayatu-Deen proposes reclassifying banditry and kidnapping as formal acts of terrorism. This reclassification would be supported by the establishment of special courts designed to bypass the delays of the traditional judiciary, ensuring that justice for such crimes is swift and certain. By ending the culture of impunity that allows these groups to operate profitably, he believes the state can reassert its authority. He maintains that the certainty of prosecution is essential to discouraging criminal networks from viewing kidnapping as a low-risk, high-reward venture.