Kunle Fagbemi, a prominent political scientist and national security scholar, has criticized the Nigerian defense establishment for its silence regarding recent foreign military operations on domestic soil.
The critique follows a Christmas Day operation where United States President Donald Trump ordered targeted airstrikes against a terrorist stronghold located in Nigeria’s Northwest region.
Speaking on Monday, the 29th of December, 2025, on Arise Television’s Morning Show, Fagbemi argued that the public is being left in the dark due to a culture of administrative entitlement within the current leadership.
Fagbemi expressed that the gravity of a foreign power conducting strikes within Nigerian borders necessitates a formal explanation from the nation’s military communication channels.
According to Fagbemi: “By now, ideally, once it is clear that we are heading in this direction, we should have received a detailed briefing from the Defence Information System.”
The scholar attributed the current information vacuum to a lack of respect for the public’s right to know. He suggested that the absence of stewardship is a direct result of officials disregarding established protocols.
He noted: “Unfortunately, those currently in office are operating with arrogance. That is why we are not seeing the level of transparency, stewardship, and accountability that is expected.”
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Fagbemi further pointed out that the failure to communicate is symptomatic of a larger systemic collapse within the country’s intelligence and information management frameworks. He challenged the functionality of key security boards, implying they have become dormant.
“If you want to have the kind of stewardship and accountability that you’re talking about, we will require everybody to play by the books. “For example, you need to ask them when the Joint Intelligence Board last met. You need to ask them when the Information Management System last met. You will realize that these are the issues we are dealing with,” he said.
The scholar’s remarks highlight a growing concern over how Nigeria manages its sovereign security narrative and its partnership with international allies in the fight against insurgency.