The magnitude of the murders and bloodshed in northern Nigeria has put the area under a spiritual curse, according to former Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara, who has emphasized that the situation needs to be handled as a national emergency.
Dogara claimed that the situation has transcended typical socio-political issues during a panel discussion at the Nigeria Investment and Industrialization Summit (NNIIS) 2025, which was hosted in Abuja by the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) on Tuesday.
The former Speaker stated, “If you are a person of faith, you will know that we are operating under a curse because it is human blood, given the kind of bloodletting we are witnessing in the North.”
He bemoaned the terrible levels of poverty and insecurity in the area and warned that unless immediate action was taken to address the situation, Nigeria’s overall progress would continue to stop.
Northern Nigeria’s growth is not a regional prerogative. This needs to be considered a national emergency. Nigeria will not advance if the enormous population in the North is not developed, he warned.
Dogara called on the people and leaders of the north to take control of their own fate and reject a society that relies on outside help.
“We must adopt extreme, transformative action and stop conducting business as usual. We have to take control of our own fate because help is not coming from anybody,” he said.
