The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned alleged acts of ethnic profiling and reported threats to deport Northern women by operatives of the Ondo State Amotekun Corps.

The forum said it was deeply concerned by a widely circulated video allegedly showing Amotekun operatives arresting, profiling and publicly parading a group of women said to be of Hausa/Fulani origin residing and carrying out lawful activities in Ondo State.

In a statement signed by its Board of Trustees Chairman, Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, the ACF described the reported actions as discriminatory, unconstitutional and a violation of the rights and dignity of Nigerian citizens.

According to the statement, Nigeria is a sovereign nation founded on equality, citizenship and the rule of law, adding that the Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to move freely and reside in any part of the country without discrimination based on ethnicity, religion, language or place of origin.

The forum stressed that no government agency, whether federal, state or local, has the legal authority to treat any Nigerian citizen as a stranger within their own country or to threaten deportation based on ethnic identity.

Dalhatu said the alleged attempt by officials of the Amotekun Corps to profile, intimidate and threaten to deport citizens to their states of origin was particularly alarming, describing it as a practice inconsistent with Nigeria’s constitutional order.

He noted that there is no provision in Nigerian law empowering any state government or security outfit to deport citizens from one part of the federation to another.

According to him, every Nigerian has equal rights across the country and is free to live and work in any location without fear of discrimination.

The ACF also expressed concern that the individuals involved in the reported incident were women engaged in ordinary economic activities, describing their public humiliation based on ethnic profiling as unacceptable in a democratic society.

While acknowledging the security challenges facing various parts of the country, the forum emphasised that criminality must be addressed through lawful investigation, credible intelligence and evidence-based policing, rather than collective punishment of communities.

It warned that such actions could heighten ethnic tensions and undermine national cohesion, especially at a time when Nigeria is striving to strengthen unity and address security challenges.

The ACF further noted that thousands of citizens from Ondo State and the wider South-West live and do business peacefully in Northern Nigeria, stressing the need to preserve longstanding traditions of mutual coexistence.
It urged all stakeholders to avoid actions that could jeopardise national unity or provoke reprisals in other parts of the country.