NIGERIA: The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has raised the alarm over Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, declaring that the crisis has escalated into a “state of war” that threatens the country’s unity and survival.
This position was contained in a communiqué issued after the 38th meeting of the ACF Board of Trustees, held in Abuja and presided over by its Chairman, Bashir M. Dalhatu.
The meeting was attended by prominent northern leaders, including Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, Mohammed D. Abubakar, Joe-Kyari Gadzama, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, and Tukur Yusuf Buratai, among others.
The Forum noted that Nigeria’s security situation has deteriorated far beyond the insurgency in the North-East. It has now spread into widespread banditry, kidnappings, communal clashes, and farmer-herder conflicts across several regions. The ACF warned that the scale and persistence of the violence now demand urgent national attention.
According to the communiqué, hundreds of thousands of Nigerians have been killed or displaced in states such as Borno, Plateau, Niger, and Kwara, while many military personnel, including senior officers, have also lost their lives.
The ACF lamented that families have been torn apart, livelihoods destroyed, and communities traumatised by the prolonged violence.
The Forum further observed that insecurity is taking a heavy toll on the nation’s economy, particularly agriculture in the North, where farmers are increasingly unable to access their farmlands. It noted that disrupted supply chains and declining food production are worsening inflation and deepening rural poverty.
Describing the situation as a national emergency, the ACF called on the Federal Government to adopt a “war-time approach” by prioritising security above all other concerns.
It urged the authorities to temporarily scale down spending on non-essential projects and redirect resources, leadership focus, and national energy towards ending the crisis.
“Extraordinary threats require extraordinary measures,” the Forum stated, stressing that restoring peace must come before any meaningful development can take place.
The ACF warned that Nigeria is at a critical crossroads, insisting that failure to decisively address the insecurity could further undermine the country’s stability and future.
It maintained that until citizens can live, work, and travel without fear, all other national ambitions will remain unattainable.
The communiqué concluded with a strong call for urgent and coordinated action, urging the government to secure the nation “decisively, comprehensively, and without delay.”
