Nigeria, Jan. 16 -- Former senator and rights activist Shehu Sani has called for community resilience against banditry and terrorism, stating that Nigerians can no longer outsource their survival solely to the state, as violence continues to ravage large swathes of the North.

Speaking at his book launch in Abuja on Thursday, Mr Sani said the persistence of insecurity across northern Nigeria, despite more than a decade of military operations and policy interventions, shows the limits of a government-only response.

He warned that without community organisation, civic consciousness and collective resolve, rural populations would remain vulnerable to armed groups.

Across Zamfara, Katsina, Kebbi, parts of Kaduna and Niger states, he said, b...