The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in Katsina and Zamfara States following a series of violent attacks that have claimed more than 140 lives in the past two months.
In a statement on Sunday signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said the killings highlight a total collapse of Nigeria’s security architecture and faulted the Federal Government’s response to the crisis.
The ADC condemned the massacre in Malumfashi, Katsina State, where 30 worshippers were reportedly shot dead inside a mosque and 20 villagers burned alive in their homes. It also referenced the execution of 47 people in Zamfara, including 38 victims killed despite ransom payments.
“This evil act epitomises the horrors Nigerians have been forced to endure under this administration. It is damning proof of the collapse of our national security, prompting even the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) to urge citizens to learn self-defence,” Abdullahi said.
The party accused President Tinubu of neglecting urgent domestic crises in favour of foreign engagements, saying, “Instead of confronting these tragedies with the seriousness they demand, President Tinubu continues to travel abroad, chasing photo-ops, while citizens are dying in droves.”
It also rebuked governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for holding a political meeting in Zamfara shortly after the killings, describing their actions as “insensitive ceremonial posturing” in a community still reeling from mass murder.
Beyond its call for a state of emergency, the ADC demanded a complete overhaul of Nigeria’s security framework, noting that the CDS’s advice for citizens to arm themselves was the clearest indication yet of the country’s fragile internal defence system.
