ABUJA — The Northern Progressive Youth Vanguard (NPYV) rejected a petition from the Arewa Youth Assembly that called for the impeachment of Lagos Governor Dapo Abiodun and Enugu Governor Peter Mbah over a dispute within the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF).
In a statement released on Sunday from the capital, NPYV Chairman Alhaji Shehu Usman Jubrin described the impeachment demand as “strange, unnecessary and politically motivated.” The group alleged that opponents of the two governors were masquerading as northern youths to advance personal agendas.
According to the NPYV, young people in the 19 northern states are politically diverse and were not consulted about the alleged crisis in the PGF, an internal body of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). “If and when Arewa youths meet, it will be to discuss insurgency, widespread poverty, insecurity and other socio‑economic challenges plaguing the region, not alleged disagreements within the Progressive Governors Forum,” the statement read.
The NPYV questioned why northern youths should be tasked with championing impeachment actions against governors from other regions. “The PGF, to the best of our knowledge, is an organisation within the ruling All Progressives Congress and has its own internal mechanisms for handling its affairs. It has never claimed to speak for the North, so why should Arewa youths suddenly make its affairs a basis for impeachment agitation?” the group asked.
The statement warned that the impeachment drive was being driven by “a faceless and subversive group conjured by desperate and drowning politicians,” and urged Nigerians to ignore what it termed “shenanigans” intended to undermine the two governors. “Northern youths are not jobless people; it is not our duty to choose leaders for the PGF or meddle in its affairs,” the NPYV added.
The Arewa Youth Assembly’s call for impeachment had emerged amid reports of internal tension within the PGF, a forum that brings together governors from Nigeria’s nine northern states to coordinate policy and political strategy. While the assembly has not released a detailed rationale, it framed the impeachment request as a response to perceived mismanagement within the PGF that, in its view, threatened the interests of northern constituencies.
The NPYV’s response highlights a broader debate over the role of youth organisations in Nigeria’s partisan battles. By dismissing the impeachment petition, the group seeks to distance northern youths from what it characterises as the political machinations of disgruntled politicians.
The matter is likely to remain a point of contention as the PGF continues its internal deliberations and as both governors face growing scrutiny over their administration’s performance. No formal impeachment proceedings have been launched against Abiodun or Mbah, and the APC has not commentated on the dispute.
The episode underscores the sensitivity of regional politics in Nigeria, where youth blocs are increasingly vocal yet remain contested as agents of change or pawns in larger power struggles.
