The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately declare a state of emergency across northern Nigeria, following a deadly terrorist ambush that claimed the lives of over 20 soldiers in Bangi, Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State.
The group described the attack as overwhelming and deliberate, calling it clear evidence of a complete breakdown in regional security. In a strongly worded statement issued by its spokesperson, Professor Abubakar Jiddere, the NEF said the North is under siege, with communities being destroyed and citizens left unprotected.
Jiddere painted a grim picture of the ongoing crisis, stating that the violence has gone beyond insecurity and has become a brutal campaign of terror and mass killings. According to him, the attack in Bangi, where soldiers were overpowered and slaughtered by heavily armed militants, amounts to a direct declaration of war on the Nigerian state.
He criticised what he called the government’s failure to protect lives and property, warning that citizens are growing weary of meaningless condolences and empty speeches. He stressed that northern communities are bleeding, while many security outposts are either helpless or missing altogether.
The NEF is demanding not just an emergency declaration, but also swift and coordinated military and intelligence operations to hunt down all terrorist and armed groups—no matter where they hide or who supports them.
The forum made it clear that continued silence or delay from the federal government may lead to open resistance. It warned that public patience is gone and that the legitimacy of any government unable to guarantee safety has collapsed.
“We won’t accept silence anymore. We won’t bow to terror,” the statement concluded.
