ON THE URGENT NEED TO DECLARE A STATE OF EMERGENCY ON SECURITY ACROSS 13 NIGERIAN STATES
Your Excellency,
We, the New Delta Grassroot Movement, write to you with a deep sense of national concern, civic responsibility, and unwavering commitment to the unity and progress of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Nigeria stands today at an avoidable crossroads—a crisis of insecurity that has spread far beyond the realm of isolated incidents and has now snowballed into a national emergency demanding decisive presidential intervention.
Across vast regions of our country, innocent citizens now live under siege. Communities have become hunting grounds for bandits, insurgents, and kidnappers. The frequency, brutality, and geographical spread of attacks have reached an intolerable level.
Your Excellency, these are extraordinary times requiring extraordinary actions.
CALL FOR IMMEDIATE DECLARATION OF A STATE OF EMERGENCY ON SECURITY
After careful consultation, community engagement, and empirical observations, we hereby urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to DECLARE A STATE OF EMERGENCY ON SECURITY in the following states:
**Borno
Benue
Plateau
Kaduna
Kebbi
Katsina
Zamfara
Kogi
Kwara
Niger
Edo North
Delta State(Delta North and Central areas)
Ondo
Ekiti**
These states have, time and again, been identified as red zones where banditry, terrorist movements, rural invasions, kidnapping, and violent crimes have persisted without meaningful decline.
GROUNDS FOR THIS URGENT REQUEST
Sir, the situation has deteriorated partly because many state governments have failed to take decisive, data-driven action.
In the words of Engr. Felix Akpoyibo, whose observations echo the frustrations of millions of Nigerians:
“It is very embarrassing that state governors don't know the number of footpaths in their states.”
“They don't know the number of flash-point communities.”
“Governors don't know the number of red-flag communities.”
“They don't know the number of dangerous roads, yet they are collecting security votes.”
Your Excellency, this tragic lack of situational awareness, despite the billions in accumulated security votes, has contributed significantly to the collapse of local intelligence, delayed response time, and the unchecked spread of insurgency networks.
BAN AFFECTED GOVERNORS FROM ACCESSING THE PRESIDENTIAL VILLA UNTIL THEY TAKE CONCRETE SECURITY ACTION
We strongly recommend that the Presidency implement the following exceptional measure:
BAN ALL AFFECTED STATE GOVERNORS FROM ACCESSING THE PRESIDENTIAL VILLA
Until they present verifiable evidence of concrete, measurable security interventions in their respective states.
This step is not punitive but corrective.
Governors must demonstrate commitment, competence, and leadership before seeking federal presence or presidential audience.
IMMEDIATE BAN ON MOTORCYCLE MOVEMENT IN RED-FLAG AREAS
In nearly all the affected states, motorcycles have become the primary mobility tool for:
bandits
kidnappers
cattle-rustling gangs
insurgent messengers
arms couriers
We urge the Federal Government to declare an interim ban on motorcycle operations in the affected zones while simultaneously providing alternative means of transportation, such as:
Community transport buses
Rural shuttle vehicles
Subsidized tricycles
Solar-powered mini vehicles (successful in parts of East Africa)
This approach has proven effective in Kenya, Uganda, Cameroon, and Chad, where bandit mobility reduced drastically after mobility restrictions were combined with strategic alternatives.
REVIEW AND RESTRUCTURING OF SECURITY VOTES
We recommend that the Federal Government:
Suspend security votes to states with poor accountability and zero measurable security outcomes.
Set up State Security Steering Committees comprising:
retired military officers
local hunters
community vigilantes
traditional rulers
security experts
women and youth leaders
religious stakeholders
This is consistent with successful community-driven security systems in Ghana, Rwanda, and Botswana, which prioritise intelligence-led policing, community partnership, and local mapping.
CREATION OF ENTRY/EXIT SECURITY POINTS IN RURAL COMMUNITIES
To curb infiltration and exit routes exploited by criminals, we urge:
Deployment of armed personnel to strategic entry/exit points
Establishment of digital monitoring posts
Use of drones for real-time surveillance
Community-led checkpoints under federal supervision
This strategy—widely used in Northern Kenya, Israel, and Colombia—has significantly reduced militia mobility and rural attacks.
FEDERAL SCRUTINY OF APPOINTEES + CABINET RESHUFFLING
We respectfully call on Your Excellency to:
Reevaluate the performance of certain federal appointees whose agencies are critical to national security
Consider a targeted cabinet reshuffle
Bring in individuals with proven expertise, operational discipline, and national orientation
A government at war with insecurity cannot afford complacency.
ACKNOWLEDGING PERFORMING STATES
While some affected states are failing woefully, we acknowledge your emphasis on fairness and truth by noting that:
Some governors are indeed performing well in other sectors—notably agriculture in Niger State, which is commendable.And also the tremendous performances by the Edo State Governor in the war against cultism in the state
However, even these relatively performing states must urgently strengthen their security committees, intelligence units, and community mobilisation systems.
No governor in a red-flag zone can afford to relax.
OUR POSITION
Your Excellency, Nigeria cannot develop under fear.
Farmers cannot farm.
Traders cannot trade.
Students cannot learn.
Investment cannot thrive.
Communities cannot sleep.
This is no longer a political issue.
It is a national survival issue.
We therefore urge immediate, bold, and I history-shaping interventions.
The New Delta Grassroot Movement also wishes to commend Your Excellency for the remarkable transformation agenda you have pursued since assuming office, which has restored confidence, inspired progress, and demonstrated your genuine commitment to national development. Many of our members who now work within federal structures have witnessed firsthand the sincerity and impact of your policies, further strengthening our loyalty to your administration. In recognition of these achievements, we affirm that the New Delta Grassroot Movement is fully prepared to mobilise the entire Delta State in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027.
CONCLUSION
Mr. President, your Renewed Hope Agenda is already flourishing across Nigeria,the state Governors should provide environmentally friendly atmosphere in their respective states.The Nigerian people are looking up to the Governors. Future generations are looking forward to benefit from these tremendous policies,this administration economic policies are bold enough to turn Nigeria into a Great Nation if properly managed by the state Governors and other political actors sir. but most of the governor and other political appointees are not ready, they are only ready for second term tickets
We deeply believe that with decisive action, political courage, and disruption of old patterns, Nigeria can and will rise again.
We await your firm and compassionate decisions Sir.
Sincerely,
Engr. Felix Akpoyibo National Coordinator
The New Delta Grassroot Movement.
24 November 2025
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