The issue of vandalism in Nigeria has escalated into a national crisis with far-reaching effects, spreading across all major sectors in the nation to become a big hurdle to developmental progress and jeopardizing national security. This uncalled act is often reportedly perpetrated or tacitly enabled by Nigerians, who are also simultaneously decrying the state of the country’s public Infrastructure and demanding reforms. From power installations to transportation systems, telecommunications infrastructure, and public utilities, no core sector remains untouched by this menace, exacerbating the challenges faced by an already strained economy.
As witnessed in the power sector, incessant vandalism acts have severely crippled Electricity Generation and distribution, deepening the nation’s energy crisis. Communities in several states have been without Electricity for weeks or even months due to theft of transformers, cables, and other necessary equipment. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), has repeatedly reported an increase in vandalism cases, with the majority of the Power Outage occurrences in 2024 caused by vandals. According to reports, the Transmission Company of Nigeria spent ₦29.3 billion to fix 266 power towers around the country that had been vandalized between January 2022 and October 2024.
Heavy toll of vandalism on power and transportation infrastructure.
This pervasive sabotage not only impedes economic activity, but also puts a burden on power distribution companies’ meager resources, as they are required to continuously replace and repair damaged infrastructure. The transportation sector has also suffered greatly from vandals that target bridges, railroads, and public transit infrastructure. Railway tracks have been sabotaged on numerous occasions, making the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) a frequent victim. One of Nigeria’s hallmark projects, the Lagos-Ibadan rail line, has suffered multiple attacks and metal component thefts for resale, endangering passengers and causing delays in trains.
Similar acts of vandalism have also impacted the Abuja-Kaduna train line, leading to derailments and disruptions in operation. Further undermining the standard of Nigeria’s transportation infrastructure is the vandalism of public bus terminals and bridges. Due to the frequent looting, repairs of the Third Mainland Bridge have cost ₦15.6 billion over a six-year period. Last year, the expansion joints on the recently commissioned Second Niger Bridge were also subjected to vandalism. There is a particularly increasing trend of stealing manhole covers in urban centers like Abuja and Lagos.
Devastating toll of pipeline and telecom vandalism.
In recent police operations, 50 people suspected of being involved in manhole cover theft were arrested and more than 25 manhole covers and other pieces of destroyed public infrastructure were found. Other states, including Lagos and Osogbo, have also reported similar reneds. These heinous acts often lead to accidents and injury by leaving open manholes on sidewalks and roadways. Nigeria’s economic backbone, the oil and gas industry, has also long been impacted by vandalism. The industry experiences substantial financial losses every year due to vandals of Pipeline and crude oil theft.
Local communities in the Niger Delta have been devastated by environmental catastrophes brought on by pipeline beaches. Over the course of five years, 7,143 pipeline vandalism cases have caused losses of ₦471 billion, a huge loss to the federal government. Telecommunications infrastructure, which modern communication relies on, was not spared. Telecom masts, fiber-optic cables, and base stations are frequently targeted by vandals, which causes major disruptions. According to the industry, more than 50,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables were destroyed, with vandalism responsible for 30% of network failures and repairs cost ₦14.6 billion in 2023.
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Public infrastructure, utilities, and monuments, which stand as symbols of national pride and service, have increasingly been vandalized. This is mostly witnessed during protests action particularly during the #EndBadGovernance Protest in 2024 and the #EndSARS protests in 2020. The cost of vandalism in Nigeria is immense, draining resources that could be used for developmental projects. For each stolen transformer, pipeline break, or destroyed railroad track, millions of Naira are redirected from vital industries like Education and healthcare to cater for this loss. Vandalism, while often perceived as a symptom of deeper societal frustrations, has been utterly condemned and must not be normalized as an outlet for expressing grievances.