Over 1,000 Nigerians have been k!lled this year – Peter Obi decries heightened insecurity in Nigeria
Labour Party Presidential candidate in 2023 election, Peter Obi, has alleged that more than 1,000 Nigerians have been k!lled and thousands more abducted between January and February of 2026.
Obi made the claim on his X account on Sunday, March 1, adding that the scale of v!olence across the country is worse than that of nations officially at war.
He criticised what he described as the “politics of zero humanity” in the country, accusing political leaders of prioritising 2027 election calculations over the safety of Nigerians.
‘’It is profoundly disturbing that while we, the politicians, continue to obsess over the 2027 elections—spending our energy scheming about how to capture, grab, and run the next election—the first two months of 2026 have reportedly seen the killing of over 1,000 Nigerians and the abduction of several thousand others.
This is the painful reality confronting our nation. From Zamfara State to Kwara, Ondo, Kebbi, Edo, Benue, Adamawa, Plateau, and many other states, families have buried loved ones, and communities have been emptied by gunshots and fear.
In over 25 states across all geopolitical zones this year alone, there have been major violent attacks on innocent citizens, kidnappings by armed bandits, mass shootings, village invasions, and brazen assaults on worshippers and travellers. The scale of bloodshed and the number of deaths in just two months in Nigeria are even worse than what we see in countries officially at war. Yet the urgency with which we discuss these tragedies does not match the urgency of our discussions surrounding zoning formulas, party structures, and campaign strategies.
This is the tragedy of our politics.
We debate power sharing while citizens are sharing funeral programs. I watched in tears yesterday as families in the Doruwa Babuje community in Plateau State buried their dead after attacks by armed terrorists, but our media and leaders were focused on discussions about party issues and the 2027 elections, when we aren’t even sure we will be alive to see it, given all the deaths happening in our country today. We strategise about 2027 while Nigerians struggle to survive 2026. This is inhumane.
We must elevate human life to a sacred status in our national priorities. Leadership is not about winning elections; it is about saving lives. We can, and we must, aspire to a Nigeria devoid of bloodshed—a Nigeria where governance is measured not by political dominance but by the safety and dignity of its people.
History will not remember how many strategies we perfected for 2027; it will remember whether we acted when Nigerians were dying. We must choose Nigerian lives over politics. We must put Nigerians first.
A New Nigeria is POssible. ‘’
