The crisis rocking the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has worsened, as the Northern Socio-cultural group suspends Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BOT), Bashi Dalhatu, over allegations of grievous misconduct, prompting a recommendation for a full forensic audit of the forum’s finances.

Chairman of the Ethics and Conduct Committee, Prof. Nuhu Muhammad Jamu, disclosed this while presenting the committee’s report at the forum’s NEC meeting presided over by the Chairman, Mr Mike Osuman (SAN).

According to him, the committee was constituted after receiving a petition from a member alleging serious infractions by the BOT chairman.

Given the weight of the allegations and the limited time available, the committee adopted an expedited process to review the claims while ensuring a fair hearing.

“We referred the petition to the BOT chairman and requested his response within 48 hours.

“Unfortunately, he did not respond within the stipulated time, leaving us to proceed based on the available evidence,” Jamu said.

The committee’s findings, he noted, revealed multiple violations of ACF’s constitutional provisions, saying central among the issues was the alleged overreach of authority by the BOT chairman, particularly in matters reserved for other organs of the forum.

The report cited an instance involving the cancellation of a meeting convened by the forum’s chairman, a move the committee said lacked constitutional backing.

ALSO, the body declared several key positions vacant, insisting that the development is in line with its constitution.

BoT chairman, Bashir Dalhatu, disclosed that the decision followed concerns over tenure limits raised by members of the forum.

According to him in a statement yesterday, the BoT acted in compliance with constitutional provisions guiding leadership tenure and succession.

Dalhatu noted that the ACF constitution provides for a six-year single tenure for BoT leaders, while National Executive Council (NEC) officials are limited to three years, renewable once.

Those affected include the Deputy Chairman of the BoT, Senator F. Orti; Vice Chairman, Ambassador Ibrahim Mai Sule; Deputy Chairman of NEC, Senator Ibrahim Ida; and the Secretary-General, Murtala Aliyu.

The BoT chairman remarked that the positions became vacant from March 10, 2026, adding that the Secretary-General was granted time to complete his handover.