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A coalition of over 100 civil society organizations (CSOs) has called for the resignation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his security leadership following a U.S. military air strike on Nigerian soil on Christmas Day.
The group, operating under the Nigerian Joint Civil Society Action, issued a press statement on Monday expressing "grave concern" over what they described as an abdication of constitutional responsibility by the Commander-in-Chief.
The coalition alleged that by authorizing a foreign power to manage internal security challenges, the federal government has undermined Nigeria’s sovereignty. They also criticized the "troubling silence" of the President and Service Chiefs in the immediate aftermath of the operation, noting that while U.S. President Donald Trump was active on social media discussing the strikes, Nigeria’s leadership was largely absent.
“If the President and his security leadership have concluded that they lack the capacity or will to manage Nigeria’s internal security challenges within the bounds of the Constitution... then constitutional responsibility and democratic integrity demand that they resign,” the statement read.
According to the coalition, the lack of transparency regarding the legal basis and rules of engagement for the strike has fueled public mistrust. They pointed to reports of munitions debris falling on farmlands in Jabo, Sokoto State, and near a hotel in Offa, Kwara State, as evidence of the risks posed to civilians.
While the federal government, through Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar, has defended the strikes as a "joint operation" based on shared intelligence, the CSOs argued that the intervention lacks democratic oversight. They warned that framing the security crisis through the lens of religious persecution—as suggested by U.S. officials—could aggravate communal tensions in Nigeria.
The coalition demanded an immediate transparent investigation into the impact of the strikes, public disclosure of the legal framework governing such collaborations, and compensation for any harm suffered by civilians.
The statement was signed by a wide range of organizations, including Amnesty International Nigeria, Yiaga Africa, BudgIT, CISLAC, and the Miideekor Environmental Development Initiative (MEDI).