The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency across Northern Nigeria, citing the worsening insecurity and the government’s constitutional and international duty to protect lives and property.
In a communiqué issued on Wednesday and signed by its spokesperson, Abubakar Jika Jiddere, the forum decried the persistent violent attacks, abductions, and killings in the region, warning that failure to act could undermine Nigeria’s stability and threaten regional peace.
NEF said the country’s security architecture remains inadequate, overstretched, and in some cases complicit through inaction, leaving citizens vulnerable and eroding public trust in government institutions.
The forum recalled the August 19 attack on a mosque in Unguwan Mantau village, where armed men killed at least 27 worshippers during early morning prayers, leaving many injured and displacing hundreds. It also condemned the execution of 35 abductees in Zamfara State despite ransom payments, alongside separate attacks in Kaduna’s Kauru and Kudan LGAs, which claimed eight lives and left eight others critically injured.
Quoting the 1999 Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Jiddere stressed that the right to life must be protected by law and that “no one shall arbitrarily be deprived of life.”
The NEF therefore urged the Federal Government to urgently acknowledge the gravity of the crisis by declaring a state of emergency. It warned that continued inaction or insufficient responses would deepen human suffering and threaten national cohesion, democratic stability, and regional peace.
The forum pledged to continue monitoring developments while engaging stakeholders nationally and internationally to secure immediate relief for affected communities.
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