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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
A coalition of over 50 prominent Nigerian civil society organizations (CSOs) has issued a scathing joint statement declaring the nation “on the brink of collapse,” urging immediate government action to address spiraling insecurity, economic hardship, and governance failures.
The statement, released Tuesday by groups including Amnesty International Nigeria, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), and Yiaga Africa, paints a grim picture of daily struggles. It highlights displaced farmers in Zamfara living in squalid camps, teachers in Abuja burning half their salaries on transport, and families in Lagos skipping meals to afford rent—contrasting sharply with governments’ record revenues from subsidy removals, naira floatation, and ballooning budgets topping ₦100 trillion in recent years.
“Politics has become Nigeria’s biggest business, even as the country suffers,” the CSOs state, accusing leaders of rhetoric over results as public services crumble and inequality widens.
They detail rampant insecurity and violence, including killings, abductions, and deserted communities across the North and Middle Belt due to weak security coordination. Rural banditry has devastated farms, disrupted food supplies, and driven inflation above 15%, with hunger now looming over millions.
The CSOs noted a nationwide kidnapping epidemic—from Sokoto schoolchildren to Abuja commuters—has turned ransom payments into the norm. Civic space is shrinking as journalists face harassment, activists receive threats, and peaceful protesters are silenced. Corruption drains resources amid trillion-naira budgets, leaving roads impassable, hospitals empty, and schools in disrepair. Economic hardship persists despite revenue surges, with inflation, unemployment, and currency woes deepening inequality and making poverty Nigeria’s starkest reality. Threats to democracy loom large, as politicians prioritize 2027 succession battles fueled by illicit funds, eroding multiparty trust. Finally, judicial credibility has eroded through political interference, delaying justice for all.
The CSOs also listed six urgent demands. In a direct call to federal, state, and local governments, the CSOs demand economic justice through social protection, jobs, healthcare, and affordable food from record revenues; coordinated security with enhanced intelligence and community protection priorities; swift corruption prosecutions, transparent spending, and ethical governance; electoral reforms, political finance controls, and depoliticized institutions ahead of 2027; protection for dissent, journalists, and civic space; and judicial independence with timely, accessible justice.
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“Nigerians are paying the price of political excesses… Every Naira of public money must be felt in the life of the ordinary citizen; anything less is betrayal,” the statement concluded, signed by 52 organizations including ActionAid Nigeria, BudgIT Foundation, and #FixPolitics.
