Against the background of the rising state of insecurity across the country, governors in the South-South states of Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta States have been urged to urgently reactivate and fully fund the BRACED Commission as a coordinated regional response to arrest the spread of insecurity to the states and the Niger Delta region.

The call was made by the Ijaw Publishers’ Forum (IPF)
in an official statement that was signed by its President, Comrade Ozobo Austin, and Secretary, Comrade Magbei Tare, on Thursday, June 18, 2026.

The BRACED Commission is a regional socio-economic and developmental organization formed by the six South-South geopolitical states in 2011 to foster regional integration, boost infrastructure, enhance security, and drive economic growth in the Niger Delta.

According to the IPF, "Recent reports show that kidnapping, banditry and violent criminality are no longer confined to their former flashpoints. Reuters recently reported that kidnapping-for-ransom attacks have spread southward, including school abductions in Oyo State, while Nigeria’s parliament has advanced state police reforms due to the deepening national security crisis.

"The South-South governors must treat these developments as a serious warning. No responsible regional leadership should wait until bandits, kidnappers, terrorists and criminal cartels become entrenched before acting," it warned.

The professional body which said the inactiveness of the Commission at a time of rising insecurity is unacceptable, called for the stregthening of a common security structure to deal with insecurity across the South-South states.

"IPF notes with concern that Delta State and other parts of the South-South already face entry-point pressures from neighbouring states, while the Niger Delta continues to battle kidnapping, cult violence, oil theft and other organized crimes.

"The Forum warns that criminal networks do not respect state boundaries. A threat that enters Edo today can move into Delta, Rivers, Bayelsa or Cross River tomorrow if there is no common security architecture backed by intelligence sharing, maritime surveillance and joint emergency response.

“It is therefore unacceptable that the BRACED Commission, created as a platform for regional integration, security cooperation and development among the South-South states, has remained largely inactive at a time the region needs it most.”

The Ijaw body of publishers therefore demands urgent action from the governors to activate the Commission whose creation should not be politicised, especially as the South-South states remain a key in the country's economy.

"IPF demands that the governors immediately convene a South-South Security and Development Summit to revive the BRACED Commission, establish a regional security coordination centre, strengthen intelligence gathering, and create a united response against terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, sea piracy and economic sabotage.

"The South-South remains Nigeria’s economic backbone. Its creeks, roads, schools, markets, oil facilities and communities must not be left exposed because of political indifference or delayed action.

"The governors must act now. Delay will be dangerous. Silence will be costly. History will not forgive any leadership that saw the warning signs and failed to prepare," the IPF cautioned.

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