By Abdullahi Sarki
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called on the Federal Government to ban ethnic militias and unregulated private armies ahead of the 2027 general elections, warning that such groups could threaten Nigeria’s democratic process.
The pro-democracy and civil rights organisation said the emergence of ethnic-based security formations, political intimidation and privately supported security outfits posed serious risks to the neutrality of the electoral environment.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Monday, HURIWA urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to order a comprehensive review of ethnic-based security outfits operating across the country.
The group said it was not opposed to legitimate community-based initiatives aimed at protecting lives and property but insisted that security remains fundamentally the responsibility of constitutional security agencies.
HURIWA specifically questioned the reported donation of ₦100 million and a brand-new Hilux vehicle by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, to the Iru Ekun Security Network, a community security initiative established by Yoruba Nation advocate Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho.
The organisation demanded transparency regarding the legal status, command structure, operational mandate and accountability mechanisms of such security formations.
It warned that Nigeria could not afford a situation where ethnic groups establish, finance, arm or operate parallel security structures outside clearly defined constitutional and statutory controls.
“A private army is a private army, irrespective of who establishes it, who finances it or which political interest it serves,” HURIWA said.
The group also questioned what it described as unequal treatment of ethnic security formations, asking why one group should be tolerated or supported while another faces severe security operations.
HURIWA urged security agencies to investigate allegations involving illegal possession, movement or deployment of arms by private or ethnic security groups.
It further called for the disarmament of ethnic militias before the 2027 elections, warning that such structures could be deployed to intimidate voters, suppress opposition campaigns, influence polling environments or enforce political directives.
“A stitch in time saves nine,” the organisation said, urging the Federal Government to act before private and ethnic security formations become instruments of electoral violence
