Northern governors on Monday issued a strong warning that the region risks losing its future to worsening insecurity and deepening poverty unless leaders take urgent and decisive action.
Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) and Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Yahaya, delivered the warning at a joint meeting of the Forum and the Northern Traditional Rulers Council in Kaduna.
Yahaya said the North now faces “the grim reality of insecurity and poverty that seeks to undermine our very existence.”
The two-day meeting, held at the Kaduna State Government House, brought together all 19 governors, traditional rulers, security chiefs, and civil society representatives in what has been described as a last push for a unified response to terrorism, banditry, and social decline across the region.
Governor Yahaya stressed that future generations will judge current leaders not by the number of projects they inaugurate, but by whether they are able to “bequeath a Northern Nigeria they can truly call home.”
He commended President Bola Tinubu for his “strong leadership and steadfast commitment to Nigeria’s security, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” particularly in ongoing rescue operations for abducted schoolchildren.
The governor extended condolences to the families of pupils abducted in Kebbi, Kwara, Kogi, Kano, Niger and Sokoto, as well as victims of recent Boko Haram attacks in Borno and Yobe, noting that assaults on schools, “the bedrock of our children’s future,” represent an attack on the region’s destiny.
Warning that insecurity “spares no one—poor or rich, Muslim or Christian,” Yahaya called for an end to political divisions and urged leaders to unite to “ensure the very survival of the North and Nigeria at large.”
He further called for the rejection of divisive rhetoric, emphasising that the crisis is fuelled not only by criminal activity but also by underdevelopment, illiteracy, weak resource management, climate change, and the abandonment of millions of Almajiri and out-of-school children.
High on the agenda was the renewed demand for the creation of state police. Reaffirming the NSGF communiqué of 10 May 2025, the governors insisted that state policing remains “a critical and effective mechanism” for tackling modern security threats and urged the National Assembly to expedite the necessary constitutional amendments.
Traditional rulers were encouraged to use their influence as stabilising forces, while religious leaders were urged to preach tolerance and refrain from inflammatory statements. Political leaders, the Forum warned, must stop exploiting ethnic or religious identities for political advantage.
Security agencies were tasked to strengthen intelligence gathering and ensure swift operational responses, while the judiciary was urged to deliver speedy criminal justice.
In a joint declaration, the governors pledged to collaborate closely with the Federal Government under President Tinubu “to turn the tide and ensure lasting peace and stability for our region and the nation at large.”