- Insecurity in Nigeria killed 4,654 people in 2025
- Abductions rise as 3,141 Nigerians kidnapped nationwide
- Northern leaders criticise 2027 election focus
- ACF warns violence is crippling education and livelihoods
Northern leaders have raised alarm over worsening insecurity in Nigeria, accusing political actors of prioritising the 2027 general elections over urgent security challenges, as a new report revealed that violent conflicts killed 4,654 peopleand left 3,141 abducted across the country in 2025.
The figures were disclosed in the Nigeria Violent Conflicts Database 2025 report released on Wednesday by Nextier Advisory Limited in Abuja. According to the report, the rising death toll reflects deepening insecurity driven by terrorism, banditry, communal clashes, and kidnappings across several regions.
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Reacting to the findings, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) criticised what it described as a growing political obsession with the 2027 elections, warning that the trend is distracting leaders from addressing the escalating violence in Northern Nigeria.
Speaking at the 79th National Executive Committee meeting of the forum in Kaduna, ACF Chairman Mamman Osuman said insecurity in the region had reached an alarming level, displacing communities and crippling social and economic activities.
“This election season has produced convoluted groups whose focus is not on out-of-school children, hunger, poverty, or frequent attacks by kidnappers and terrorists, but rather on strategies for repositioning ahead of the 2027 elections,” Osuman said.
He lamented the surge in terrorism, armed banditry, insurgency, and kidnapping in states such as Kwara, Southern Kaduna, Katsina, and Benue, noting that repeated attacks had forced many residents to flee their homes.
Osuman warned that the growing number of displaced persons had resulted in overcrowded camps and informal settlements with limited access to basic services, increasing the risks of malnutrition and death, especially among women and children.
“Insecurity has deepened to such an extent that external military assistance has been required,” he stated.
According to him, schools in many affected areas have been shut down due to fear of attacks, while farming, healthcare access, and rural trade have been severely disrupted.
“Our existence as a socio-cultural organisation must not be merely ceremonial or rhetorical; it must be principled, sincere, sacrificial, and action-driven,” Osuman said.
He called on federal and state governments to intensify security efforts and urged ACF state chapters to engage constructively with authorities to restore peace, stability, and rebuild communities devastated by violence.