The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has raised the alarm over Nigeria’s worsening security situation, declaring that the country has effectively slipped into a “state of war” and urging the Federal Government to adopt extraordinary and urgent measures to halt the deepening crisis.
The position was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the 38th meeting of the ACF Board of Trustees held in Abuja, where northern leaders reviewed the escalating violence across several parts of the country.
The meeting, presided over by the Chairman of the Board, Bashir Dalhatu, was attended by prominent figures including former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mahmud Ahmed; former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar; ex-Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai; and former President of the UN General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, among others.
In its resolution, the forum said Nigeria’s security challenges have moved beyond isolated cases of insurgency, banditry and communal clashes, describing the situation as a full-blown national emergency threatening the country’s survival.
According to the ACF, the scale, persistence and human cost of violent attacks now require a fundamental reordering of national priorities, warning that failure to act decisively could further endanger state stability.
The forum lamented that hundreds of thousands of Nigerians have been killed, injured or displaced in affected states including Borno, Plateau, Niger and Kwara, noting that security personnel have also continued to suffer significant casualties in the line of duty.
It further stressed that the humanitarian consequences of the crisis have been devastating, with families displaced, livelihoods destroyed and entire communities left in psychological trauma, while economic activities continue to suffer severe disruption.
The ACF also expressed concern that insecurity has severely undermined agricultural production, particularly in northern Nigeria, leading to supply chain breakdowns and contributing to rising food inflation nationwide.
It argued that increased investment in security should not be seen as a diversion from development, but rather as a necessary foundation for economic recovery and national growth.
“Redirecting national resources toward security is not a diversion from economic development; it is a prerequisite for it,” the forum said.
The group called on the Federal Government to adopt what it described as a “wartime approach” to governance, including the possible suspension or scaling down of non-essential capital projects in order to channel more resources into tackling insecurity.
Reiterating its concern, the ACF warned that Nigeria stands at a critical crossroads, adding that continued deterioration of the security situation poses a direct threat not only to lives and property but also to the unity and future of the country.
It maintained that meaningful national progress would remain unattainable unless citizens are able to live, move and work freely without fear of violence.
The forum therefore urged the Federal Government to act swiftly and decisively, insisting that only a comprehensive and sustained security response can prevent further national decline.
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