A coalition of Yoruba and Igbo self-determination groups, operating under the banner of the Coalition to De-amalgamate Nigeria for Security (CODES), has declared that continued coexistence within Nigeria has become untenable due to worsening insecurity, mistrust, and unresolved historical grievances.
The coalition announced a formal alliance for the peaceful de-amalgamation of Nigeria in a communiqué issued on Friday following a world conference and press briefing held via Zoom. CODES argued that Nigeria’s current structure is unsustainable and that peaceful self-determination now represents the only viable path to security, justice, and lasting peace.
Signatories to the communiqué include Prof. Banji Akintoye and Chief Sunday Adeyemo (Sunday Igboho) of the Yoruba self-determination movement, as well as leaders of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), including Mazi Tony Nwisi and Prof. Chinedu Agbodike.
Addressing the international media, the coalition described its alliance as a historic and moral imperative, insisting it was neither extremist nor violent. It accused the Nigerian state of surviving on institutionalised falsehood while failing to protect citizens amid widespread violence, displacement, and humanitarian crises.
CODES traced Nigeria’s instability to the 1914 colonial amalgamation and post-colonial centralisation, arguing that the state was formed without consent and has since entrenched inequality, corruption, and insecurity. It alleged state complicity or inaction in violent attacks across the Middle Belt, South-East, and other regions, warning that insecurity has evolved into a crisis of state legitimacy.
Invoking international law, the coalition called for UN-recognised referendums, the release of detainees held for self-determination advocacy, international investigations into mass killings, and recognition of the Biafra and Oduduwa nations.
The group stressed that its campaign is non-violent, declaring that peaceful self-determination remains the only alternative to looming national collapse.
