The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has raised alarm that Northern Nigeria is being pushed to the wall due to worsening insecurity, poverty, and environmental problems.
The warning came after the group’s 78th National Executive Committee meeting held in Kaduna.
ACF Chairman, Mamman Osuman, said the North could no longer remain quiet while lives and resources were being lost.
“This is not a time for silence. Our security keeps deteriorating, our natural resources are being exploited, and environmental issues are increasing. The North must rise and stand together to defend itself,” he said.
Osuman lamented the daily killings across the region, noting that children, women, men, and the elderly had fallen victim to floods, disasters, bandits, and terrorists. He urged northern leaders and citizens to reflect, unite, and pray for peace.
Speaking to the BBC after the meeting, ACF adviser Bashir Hayatu Gentile explained that the group had carefully reviewed the challenges facing the North and concluded that urgent action was required.
“These problems are real, and the government must be compelled to act. Nothing is more disturbing than the insecurity—kidnappings and killings everywhere. The North must unite and pressure government to do more,” he said.
Gentile added that Osuman’s message to the Federal Government was clear: the patience of the North is “running out” and new strategies are needed to stop the destruction.
The ACF also expressed concern over a recent Amnesty International report, which revealed that more than 10,000 people had been killed in Northern Nigeria in just two years of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
According to Gentile, the killings are accompanied by frequent mass abductions and village raids. He cited the attack in Malumfashi, Katsina State, where gunmen stormed a mosque during dawn prayers, killing and burning worshippers. “The report said 27 people died, but the actual number was higher,” he noted.
The Forum criticized the silence of government officials on Amnesty’s findings, saying their refusal to challenge the figures shows how serious the crisis is.
“Since the report was released, no one in government has denied it. That is why ACF insists Nigeria’s security system must be completely restructured,” Gentile concluded.
Patience of north running out – ACF warns over rising insecurity
