By Lamara Garba-Azare
A nation is not merely a stretch of land marked by borders on a map. It is a will. It is authority. It is the solemn promise that those who govern will protect those who are governed. The day a country hands that promise to another power even in the name of security it begins a quiet retreat from its own essence a retreat Nigeria now appears to be making.
This uncomfortable reality was laid bare following the American military airstrike on an alleged ISIL terrorist camp in Sokoto-North West, Nigeria on Sunday 25th December 2025. By the open admission of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar Nigeria provided the intelligence approved the operation and watched as the United States carried out the strike on Nigerian soil. Worse still Nigerians learned of this act of war not first from their own President but from the President of another country. History is unforgiving to nations that clap for others while standing aside in matters of their own survival.
Let us not hide behind diplomatic language. Cooperation is not the same as surrender. Partnership does not mean handing over the sword while you hold the scabbard. If Nigeria had the intelligence that led to the bombing of the alleged ISIL camp in Sokoto then Nigeria should have led the operation. Intelligence without execution power is like vision without legs it sees the danger but cannot move toward it.
The primary duty of any government is security. That duty cannot be subcontracted. When a state begins to rely on foreign jets to enforce peace within its borders it sends a dangerous signal to its citizens and to the world that it no longer fully trusts its own strength. And when such sensitive military operations are announced first by Washington rather than Abuja the symbolism is loud humiliating and politically costly.
A philosopher once warned that power given is rarely returned whole. Today it is an American airstrike in Sokoto. Tomorrow it may be decisions taken without even the courtesy of consultation. Sovereignty does not collapse in one dramatic moment. It erodes quietly justified by convenience and defended with excuses.
America too must be spoken to plainly. If this intervention is truly driven by goodwill then goodwill must go beyond missiles and statements. A sincere ally builds capacity not dependency. Where is the complete transfer of advanced surveillance technology. Where are the drones the precision systems and the satellite access that would allow Nigeria to conduct such operations on its own territory without foreign aircraft and foreign command structures. Friendship that keeps one party permanently reliant is not generosity. It is control in soft clothing.
There is also a troubling strategic question Nigerians must not ignore. ISIL and its affiliates have long found oxygen around the Lake Chad axis rather than Sokoto. That region has remained the heart of cross border terrorism recruitment and logistics for years. So why this sudden focus elsewhere. Who selected the Sokoto target and based on whose broader security calculations. In matters of national security silence breeds suspicion and suspicion thrives where transparency is absent.
Leadership is not measured by how many powerful friends a country has but by how firmly it stands on its own feet. A government that truly believes in its people would invest relentlessly in its armed forces equip them with modern tools and trust them to defend the nation with honour and competence. Instead Nigerians are being asked to celebrate a foreign airstrike as proof of seriousness.
But a country that borrows its shield today may wake up tomorrow unable to raise its own. A nation that allows others to fight its battles will soon be told where when and how it may exist.
Nigeria must reflect urgently and honestly. Terrorism must be defeated yes but by Nigerian hands under Nigerian command and for Nigerian dignity. Anything else is a costly miscalculation dressed up as cooperation.
As history teaches us freedom is not lost only through invasion. It is often surrendered through comfort. If Nigeria does not reclaim its security mandate now it may one day discover that what was traded away in the name of safety was the very soul of the state.
Lamara Garba Azare a veteran journalist writes from Kano.
