Insecurity: Forum raises alarm over rising death toll

A youth group under the auspices of Nigeria Youth Forum (NYF) has raised serious alarm over Nigeria’s worsening security crisis, warning that the country is drifting dangerously into a state of anarchy as citizens continue to pay the price for the government’s failure to act decisively. The Forum in a statement issued on Wednesday by […]

A youth group under the auspices of Nigeria Youth Forum (NYF) has raised serious alarm over Nigeria’s worsening security crisis, warning that the country is drifting dangerously into a state of anarchy as citizens continue to pay the price for the government’s failure to act decisively.

The Forum in a statement issued on Wednesday by its National President, Comrade Toriah Olajide Filani, described the ongoing killings in Benue, Zamfara, Katsina, Borno and Plateau states, alongside emerging terror-linked groups in Kwara State, as a coordinated assault on national stability.

The group outrightly rejected the security summit proposed by the National Assembly, dismissing it as a repetitive and ineffective measure that has never produced meaningful results.

“We have no confidence whatsoever in the National Assembly’s proposed security summit. It will amount to another round of talk shows and hollow communiqués. If the president had sacked just one GOC or Commissioner of Police over the atrocities in these states, others would have sat up by now,” Felani stated.

The group warned that Nigeria is bleeding and that those entrusted with protecting lives and property appear more concerned with political maneuvering than confronting the national emergency.

“Nigeria is bleeding while our leaders chase shadows. Every week, the country is plunged into fresh chaos, and all we get are recycled press statements and condolence messages,” the group lamented.

Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly, Hon. Ahmadu Jaha, member representing Damboa, Gwoza, and Chibok Federal Constituency of Borno State, decried the resurgence of Boko Haram and ISWAP, revealing that insurgents now deploy weaponized drones more advanced than those in the Nigerian military’s arsenal.

“At one point, 22 of Borno State’s 27 local government areas were under terrorist control,” Jaha warned. “If we fail to act decisively now, Nigeria risks the kind of collapse that befell empires like Rome, whose leaders ignored the threat until it was too late.”

The Forum echoed his concerns, describing recent attacks in Uromi (Edo), Jos (Plateau), and parts of Kaduna as clear signs of an expanding warfront. It warned that what began as farmers-herders clashes has evolved into highly coordinated attacks by foreign mercenaries and well-armed bandit networks.

“Tuareg fighters, Berbers, and war-hardened militias from the Sahel have infiltrated Nigeria’s porous borders. These are not random attacks; they are planned operations with strategic objectives,” Felani said.

The group cautioned that Nigeria risks descending into full-scale war if urgent and far-reaching actions are not taken immediately.

“If this trend continues, banks will close, markets will shut down, and the economy will grind to a halt. Checkpoints will be manned by militias. Those dreaming of escape will be trapped behind barricades manned by lawless armed groups,” the statement warned.

It further noted that blaming indigenous Fulani communities for the crisis is misguided, stating that many of the attacks are carried out by foreign elements who have exploited Nigeria’s weak border control and institutional gaps.

“This is not a tribal war. It is a national threat enabled by state failure. If Rwanda’s history taught us anything, it is that status and wealth won’t shield anyone when the system collapses,” the group said.