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Fifty-two Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have expressed alarm over Nigeria’s growing insecurity, disclosing that at least 19,980 people lost their lives and 12,362 others were abducted since President Bola Tinubu took office in May 2023.
The groups made the disclosure in a joint statement issued on Thursday to commemorate the 9th National Day of Mourning themed, “Nigerian Lives Matter.” According to the coalition, figures obtained from massattrocities.org also showed that at least 1,486 security personnel lost their lives while on active duty within the same period.
Among the organisations that endorsed the statement are Global Rights, BudgIT, Centre for Social Justice, Centre for Transparency Advocacy, Centre LSD, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Citizens Advocacy for Social & Economic Rights (CASER), Clean Technology Hub, and CLEEN Foundation, among others.
The coalition further disclosed that at least 865 students have been abducted from schools across Nigeria since 2023, while thousands of children remain displaced or out of classrooms, further deepening the country’s out-of-school children crisis.
The organisations also expressed concern over alleged extrajudicial killings and civilian casualties linked to security operations, including recurring incidents of accidental airstrikes on civilian communities.
According to the groups, the reported figures exclude deaths arising from regular criminal activities such as armed robbery, stressing that the data underscores the scale of insecurity in a country “that insists it is not at war.”
Abduction Incidents Highlight Deepening Security Crisis
They noted that violent attacks ranging from insurgency and terrorism to kidnappings and extrajudicial killings continue to affect communities across every region of the country, while perpetrators operate “with boldness and impunity.”
The coalition maintained that the persistent violence points to deeper governance failures and a growing erosion of the value attached to human life in the country.
“Communities are repeatedly attacked despite prior warnings and visible patterns of violence. Survivors are often left without justice, rehabilitation, compensation, or even acknowledgement from the state,” the statement read.
The organisations warned that insecurity is also worsening food inflation as many farmers can no longer safely access their farmlands. They added that schools are increasingly operating under fear due to rising attacks and abductions.
The coalition also criticised what it described as a contradiction between the government’s surveillance capabilities and its inability to dismantle kidnapping and ransom networks operating across the country.
The groups accused members of the political class of paying greater attention to political calculations ahead of the 2027 elections rather than addressing the country’s security challenges.
“We remind them that corpses do not vote and that the erasure of communities means those wards cannot record verifiable votes,” the statement added.
The coalition explained that the National Day of Mourning was established as a citizen-led initiative aimed at honouring victims of mass atrocities and violent killings while demanding accountability from authorities constitutionally responsible for protecting lives and property.
The organisations called on the Federal Government to urgently fulfil its constitutional responsibility by protecting lives and property, prosecuting perpetrators of violent crimes, strengthening intelligence gathering and rapid response systems, dismantling kidnapping and ransom networks, and providing humanitarian support for victims and displaced persons.
They also demanded increased protection for schools, farming communities, women, children, and other vulnerable groups disproportionately affected by insecurity.
Reaffirming their commitment to amplifying the voices of victims and holding public office holders accountable, the coalition insisted that the country must not become indifferent to the growing loss of lives.
“Nigeria cannot continue to gather annually to mourn the dead while failing daily to protect the living. We refuse to become desensitised to preventable killings. Nigerian lives matter,” the statement added.
